Valence
by Cowjump
Summary: With the end of their first year at Beacon Academy having come to pass, Team RWBY must contend with the next three months of their summer break. Follow this eclectic bunch as they are thrown into a situation that utilizes neither their combined combat prowess nor their acquired knowledge on all things battle-related during their adventures in the city of Vale.
1. Chapter 1: Stargazing

[Edit: June 15, 2014] The most common criticism I have received for this story thus far has been the difficulty caused by longer sentence and paragraph structures clashing with the format of Fanfiction. To alleviate some amount of eye strain, I have uploaded PDFs of every chapter released on this site and will continue to do so as new chapters are posted. These PDFs have the same formatting I see when creating the chapters and are apparently easier to read for desktop-view readers (I am still working out what to do for mobile-view readers.). A link to these can be found near the top of my profile. Thank you.

Thank you for clicking on this story and at least giving me the opportunity to entertain. As this is the first chapter of my novel-to-be, I will keep this chapter's author's note at a minimum, letting the story speak for itself. There is an extended author's note on my profile that includes an expanded explanation for the story, what I plan to do with the story, a disclaimer, and other supplementary information. I would suggest at least reading my plans for this story, as it includes when I plan on posting and any extraneous information that should ease the mind of an expectant reader.

With all of this out of the way, I present to you, _Valence_.

* * *

Chapter 1: Stargazing

From one horizon to the other, from the streets of Vale to the spire of Beacon, the world of Remnant was bathed in the soft glow of moonlight as the atmosphere was alight with the twinklings of distant stars. Not could a sound be heard from the jutting cliff connected to that prestigious school. From this vantage, two grand spectacles of human achievement could be seen: one being the silhouetted school whose appearance would have been imposing if not for the warm lights which spilled from its windows while the other was the sprawling terran nebula of Vale. It was only at night that these two marvels could seem truly alive to a distant onlooker. During the day, the rolling, verdant treescape of the Emerald Forest and the adjacent, perennially autumnal Forest of Forever Fall dominated the view from this overhang. However, it was as far away from that equinoctial time as it could get as the spring moon hung lazily above, lacking the will to reveal the damage that had been done to it.

A warm breeze fluttered across this cliff, rustling even the most insignificant blades of grass and bringing with it the change of seasons. Atop this vista was a stone bench made for more, but seating only one. The wind whispered up to the solitary construct and quickly overtook it, cooling the bench and warming its occupant.

Blake Belladonna relaxed upon the cool stone bench, letting her gaze shift between the stars and the city. A slight gust ran through her hair and across her skin, and while a cold breeze would naturally cause a shiver and recoil, this warmth caused the young woman to let out a contented sigh—to let her guard down without the prying eyes of outsiders watching over her.

It was only in the middle of the night that the supine form could find total solace and completely relax. To gaze up at the stars would be to let her mind wander to distant, fantastical adventures that she could only read of in her novels. To cast a glance to that distant city would be to yearn for such an adventure she could call her own. However, she was content to simply lay upon the bench and admire the scenery around her for the time being. It was with these sights that the Faunus girl could achieve peace and total solitude.

While her attitude towards other members of the school had become more accepting over the past few months, she could not yet shake the feeling that her guard was required around everyone. In fact, this was one of the primary causes of her flight to this natural terrace: she wanted to be alone. Although this sort of retreat would have been previously spurred by an affinity for isolation or potential aggression levied against her at the beginning of the year, this particular early hour escapade brought her to the cliff in search of peaceful quiet. She had undoubtedly become more comfortable around the student body of Beacon Academy, if only marginally, but despite all of her progress in assimilating into a more social environment, she could not let go of her tendency to stray.

Fortunately, Blake felt that it was safe to be herself around one particular group of people. Whereas the young Faunus would choose to completely hide herself from the general population and even make herself scarce around the student body, she found that being around Team RWBY was a wholly enriching experience. She found that she could do what she wanted without being judged, even if the majority of her desires were to spend her free time reading and, consequently, detaching herself from whatever conversations arose. With Team RWBY, she had not only found a group of huntresses-in-training who could become steadfast allies, she had found a group of friends that would last for the foreseeable future.

Her life before Beacon left much to be desired in terms of friendship. Between the quiet aggression set against the Faunus race by the general population and the increasingly militant actions of the White Fang, Blake had found opportunities for true relationships to be few and far between. Upon arriving at Beacon, however, she found that despite the events of her past, she was welcomed whole-heartedly by those she could now call friends.

As she gazed up at the stars, finding known constellations and rationalizing new ones, Blake reflected upon those who had so drastically shaped her life since coming to this academy. She thought back to the first day, when the airships came in from all corners of the kingdom and when the crowds were at their largest. It was in one such airship that Blake found herself faced with her first obstacle of the year: groups of people in a confined space. While she had felt confident in her ability to hide in plain sight, this deception did no good outside of combat or reconnaissance scenarios. Instead, she found that her tactic of joining the mass' epicenter caused more people to try speaking with her. This only caused her to back out and stand at an awkward distance from everyone else, leaving her in the open for a potential attack but free of any unwanted conversation.

However, once she stepped out of the airship and back onto solid land, the calm, cool demeanor which so many believed to be her regular personality was pieced back together. Although she had to remain around the same group as she waited for her luggage, Blake was able to cope due to the greater space they were given. While the wait for her singular suitcase did take longer than projected and she did have to brush off more attempts of conversation than her conscience would have liked, Blake was able to leave the docks with her sanity intact and with her suitcase's latch only partially so.

It was on this day that she learned that her time with the White Fang was not a completely fruitless period of her past. With the organization, she had intended on fighting in a diplomatic manner and for those who could not fight, themselves. While this diplomatic approach did not last long, she found that her willingness to fight for a righteous cause had become second nature. This was shown through her first interaction with her eventual teammates, Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee.

She had come across the duo shortly after hearing an explosion and choosing to investigate. What she found, however, was more surprising than a simple explosion could ever hope to be. Seeing the heiress to the Schnee Dust Company throne was an immediate trial on the young Faunus' convictions and therefore left her in a state of paralyzing indecision. Before her were the choices of verbally attacking the young woman, thereby maintaining the familiar morality of the terrorist organization, or to simply run and hide and hope that she would never come in contact with the girl again. Yet Blake's mind would soon be made up after she realized why she had come to Beacon in the first place. This was her chance for a fresh start.

In this quest, Blake had adopted the idea that whatever happened in her past would stay in her past. Unfortunately, second nature instincts never could.

The scene she arrived upon was that of Weiss berating Ruby for a mistake involving the former's collection of Dust. Blake believed that a mere slap on the wrist would have sufficed, but the insults coming from the heiress were far worse. Seeing Ruby, this seemingly defenseless, innocent girl, being pushed into a corner with no chance to fight back, Blake found herself compelled to intervene.

The subsequent interaction with Weiss would eventually be regretted, but at the time of intervention, Blake knew that it was necessary for Ruby's sake. She built the heiress up by listing her achievements and stating the fame of her family's company before bringing her down hard by listing its controversial business practices and questionable violations of accepted ethics. She doubted such a strategy would work on any regular person, but it was proven particularly effective against a girl raised in an environment where her father could do no wrong. With this interaction, the argument between Ruby and Weiss ended as the latter stormed off to some unknown location that even she was likely unsure of. Just as Ruby was about to thank her savior, however, Blake left, too.

Looking back on the departure, Blake thought she might have come across as brusque by leaving the obviously flustered Ruby alone, muttering appreciations without an audience. Perhaps this initial appearance of calm, cool, and collected might have strayed too far into the realms of cold and detached or perhaps the Faunus was simply awkward and did not want to admit this leave as the retreat it truly was. Whatever the case, her conscious would find at least some reprieve in the following hours.

She met Ruby later that night in Beacon's ballroom and sparked the beginnings of a friendship. What had been innocent curiosity towards Blake's literature struck a chord in the Faunus' mind and shed light upon what her fresh start entailed. This simple gesture meant that despite the failed relationships she had held in the past, Blake could potentially begin to open up to this girl and others like her, hopefully finding true camaraderie among people of righteous causes. This willingness to accept Ruby as a friend was only added to by the girl's noble, albeit idealistic, reason for becoming a huntress.

Unfortunately, Weiss felt the need to interject herself once again in her now familiar, insulting fashion. While Blake did agree on some level that the volume she and Ruby maintained could have disturbed others, the way Weiss had handled the situation was too hostile for Blake's taste. It was for this reason that she blew out her candle.

The first day alone had shifted Blake's perspective on how social interactions should be and how they would affect her life in the years to come. Hearing the bickering of her soon-to-be teammates, she caught herself with a mirthful smirk that she had to constantly suppress. The way they interacted was as though they had no worries in the world outside of those immediately presented to them. It was different—refreshing, even.

With a sigh, Blake moved on the bench so that she was lying on her side, staring now at the gleaming city which cast a halo of warm light up into the surrounding atmosphere. The wind still blew as gently as it had when her reminiscing started scant minutes ago. Her hair moved with this wind, causing some of it to blanket the arm not touching the bench. Despite the large distance between the cliff and the city, Blake's eyes reflected the lights of the capital as she gazed into the glow with unguarded, hopeful happiness.

Looking back on her team, the young Faunus found that she had failed to reflect upon the third and arguably most important member. Yang Xiao Long was Blake's partner who was as brash, loud, and energetic on the battlefield as she was off of it. At a first glance at the partnership, one would believe that cooperation would be nonexistent as both partners seemed like polar opposites. Where Yang was outspoken, Blake was reserved. Where Yang dealt with battles head-on, Blake kept to the outer edges and striked at an opportune instance. Where Yang was outgoing and social, Blake was, admittedly, shy and was prone to social anxiety. Though the two did contrast in many regards, this contrast lead to a wholly effective team dynamic, making the two nigh unstoppable on a battlefield. On top of this, Blake found that the conversations she held with the blonde brawler were consistently enjoyable.

Between the travels, battles, and discussions the two had during school assignments and the conversations they held during lunch concerning various analyses made by the blonde about their classes and teachers, Blake was left without a moment of boredom. While Yang tended make bad jokes from time to time and occasionally threw in some crude remarks, she was able to elicit a smile from Blake—or at least an amused smirk which often substituted for one. It was safe to say that Yang was Blake's first real friend at Beacon and, as such, Blake found that the blonde could easily drag her into any misadventure and make it enjoyable.

Chiefly among these misadventures was what the rest of Team RWBY understood as the inception of the bunk bed idea but what Blake refers to as the "Banzai Incident." The young Faunus still will not let go of that spontaneous outburst she had shown when joining in on the sisters' joyful exclamation. Her rationalizations for why she did this changed from "promoting a better team dynamic" to "really wanting bunk beds" to "getting back at Weiss" (for what reason, she wasn't sure.). The true reason for this outburst was to try and get in Yang's good graces by acting more like her in slight ways.

Blake had found that straying from the proverbial crowd did nothing but hinder the entire team. She found that she needed to go along with the whims of the group if she wanted to be a better teammate. She found that by simply being around the other members of her team, she could create a more trusting bond in battle and a lasting friendship between the four of them. Distance created distrust for all parties involved.

Blake shifted once again on the bench, lying on her back for the second time this evening to stare up at the lunar mass. Tonight was a full moon, making the landscape all the more serene with its gentle glow. At this stage of the lunar cycle, the wreckage which covered just under half of the moon's surface could not yet be seen. Soon enough, however, the debris would be visible from every corner of Remnant for a few nights' time before hiding again behind the complete half.

She thought back to the definitive moment which showed that attending Beacon meant a fresh start for her life. While Blake was prepared for tensions to rise between herself and the Schnee heiress, what she was not prepared for was the way she had acted when tensions boiled over. After harsh words were exchanged between the two, Blake found herself fleeing not only for her own safety, but for the integrity of her team. Most of her decision-making process in this instance was spurred by her momentary hatred for Weiss' racist views; however, mere hurt feelings had never before caused Blake to run from a problem. What made her run was the thought that if their argument continued, the team would become disjointed. Even though Weiss was a Schnee, Blake found that the girl had the capacity to be amicable in her own way, so when the argument came to be, Blake wanted nothing more than to make amends.

Nevertheless, she ran away—an action that she found to be something of a theme in her life. This retreat gave her time to ruminate on why Weiss would think the way she did about the Faunus as a whole and why Blake, herself, thought this way about Weiss. It was with these thoughts coupled with the unfortunate revelation that the White Fang was working with Roman Torchwick that Blake was able to form her own judgment on the situation: the White Fang was severely misguided and Weiss was correct. She had felt this way before leaving the organization, yet rationalized their militant decisions as harmless conflicts of interests. Now, however, she was sure that the White Fang was in the wrong. From this, Blake was able to empathize with some—but not all—of the things Weiss had said about them.

While the subsequent apology from the heiress did leave a great deal unsaid, Blake had accepted it nevertheless. Tensions still remained between them, but these was nowhere near as bad as theu had been. Because of this apology, however, Blake was able to feel more comfortable about her Faunus heritage to the point where she was able to put up with some of the remarks from Ruby and Yang since they were simply jokes and not callous, racial insults. Though, there was a limit to her capacity in dealing with them, but that is neither here nor there.

All in all, her time at Beacon Academy had exceeded her expectations. She had found a way to put her skills on the battlefield to good use, she had found solace in the fact that she was accepted despite being a Faunus, and she had found a group of friends that legitimately cared for her. She let out an audible sigh as she felt another warm breeze grace her skin. But it was with this distraction that Blake was able to hear the grass behind her crunch not too far away. Her Faunus ears perked beneath her bow as she tried to make out what—or, rather, who—the sound was. Between the early hour of her excursion and the only ambient noise being the soft hum on the wind, Blake was easily able to focus on the unsubtle sounds approaching. She would know that carefree, energetic gait anywhere.

Blake sat up and faced the city, reclining slightly so she could still gaze up at the moon and stars. The noise of the crunching grass drew nearer and was accompanied by a quiet yawn—Blake was honestly surprised that she had not heard the newcomer sooner. It took only seconds for the footsteps to stop close by.

"Hey, Blake!" Yang called in the same cheerful tone she always had. Fatigue was seeping its way into her words, but even if she was aware of this fact, it was doubtful she cared. "Whatcha doing out here?"

The Faunus turned to look at her partner who, despite being obviously tired, exuded the same warm energy she often radiated in the midst of a battle. She seemed to be unfazed about standing barefoot in the dewed grass with nothing but her pajamas on. Blake had to give her credit; the girl had guts. She, herself, had changed into combat attire before venturing out—the mere thought of going outside in her pajamas was mortifying. Yang's lilac irises locked with Blake's amber own for a considerate moment before the former gave a smile that seemed to rid herself of all remaining exhaustion.

Blake returned the smile as best she could, knowing that she could never match the warmth of her partner's grin. "Good evening, Yang," she greeted cordially.

"Evening?" Yang was incredulous, proving that she was without a doubt wide awake now. "If anything, it's morning!" The young Faunus simply smirked and shook her head, looking back out at the city. However, for one reason or another, Yang jumped in front of her partner's gaze, hands placed chidingly on her hips. "You didn't answer my question."

"Perhaps," Blake said, immediately following this with a purposeful silence. She knew that the longer she held this distracted façade, the more difficult it would be to suppress a grin, but knowing that every passing second made it increasingly harder for Yang to be patient made it all enjoyable. Soon enough, though, the teasing would come to an end with a light chuckle, causing her partner to send a joking glare. "Just stargazing is all," she finally answered, sending her rekindled smirk to the blonde who caused it.

"Well, why didn't you just say so?" Yang asked before unceremoniously seating herself next to her partner. "I would have joined you if you asked." She reclined in a way not dissimilar to Blake's current position and followed the Faunus' gaze to the lights above.

Blake felt the urge to slide over and give Yang more room, but ultimately decided against it. There was enough room for the both of them and the girl in black did not particularly mind their arms touching—in fact, she preferred it to the dropping temperatures she had been trying to ignore. Although the Blake of earlier in the year would have certainly moved over, the Blake of now was content to have a friend by her side. An odd smile formed on her lips at the company she was given.

"Not much good in stargazing if the only thing you can see is Vale," Yang offered. While Blake had been looking up to where the foreign stars were, the blonde had lowered her gaze and became entranced by the more familiar lights of the kingdom's capital. "Though I will admit, it is beautiful out here tonight, isn't it?"

Blake turned to find Yang giving her a toothy grin. Although she had known Yang for well over half a year by this point, she still could not tell when the girl was genuinely enchanted or simply being facetious. Regardless, heat rose to Blake's cheeks at the mere possibility of a compliment. She could only hope that the moonlight did not expose this moment of vulnerability and that Yang was not perceptive enough to see it. She hummed in affirmation, attempting to change the subject for her own posterity. "Although, the light pollution does make it somewhat difficult to see some of the constellations."

Yang was taken aback with obviously feigned incredulity. "Light pollution? Pffft. As if light could pollute anything," she huffed. This was one of the moments where Blake was certain her partner was kidding.

Once again, she shook her head, trying to keep a laugh from escaping. At this, the potential conversation faded to a comfortable silence as the two simply watched their respective stars. Eventually, Blake would notice that the comfort of the quiet breeze had been replaced by the warming aura of the brawler, but she would not complain. She had come to realize at some point during these past few months that her partner seemed to always have her aura active. With Yang's Semblance being based in fire, this meant an ever-present warmth for both herself and those around her. Such was the present case.

Somehow, with Yang's presence, the stars seemed to shine brighter and the capital below seemed more regal. Blake looked over at her and could not restrain a small smile, knowing that she would never be able to express how grateful she was to have her as a friend. She watched as Yang excitedly took in the sights, eyes darting from building to distant building and star to distant star. This girl who now sat next to aversive Blake had singlehandedly brushed off almost every worry about the past which could perceivably affect their futures. For this and the companionship she provided, Yang was deserving of the Faunus' respect.

The girl in reference soon trained her gaze on the girl in black. Quickly, Blake turned to face forward, hoping that her partner had not caught her staring. All the while, her face flushed a hue more noticeable than the blush of before. Fortunately, either Yang had not noticed or simply did not mind the staring because she initiated conversation once again. "So…" she drawled, prompting Blake to look back at her, blush still visible, "the break's coming up. You have anything planned? Anything you wanna do?"

In her preoccupation with adjusting to this year's fresh start and her current action of inaction, Blake had managed to push "the break" of which Yang spoke into the deep recesses of her mind. "The…break?" It was not so much a question to Yang as it was an attempt to recall long-forgotten information, but any help would indeed be appreciated. The same warm, humid breeze from before returned and blew across the girls' forms. Seemingly, this was all it took for Blake to realize that Yang was talking about their summer break at the end of this semester. Unfortunately, while the Faunus had made the correct assumption, elaborating on her plans would prove a trickier process. "The break…hmm…umm..."

"Blake!" Yang gasped, shocked at the unsaid statement. The girl in black steeled herself for the incoming lecture about how it was supposedly necessary to take breaks from schoolwork. "You can't be serious." She was answered by Blake looking at the hands folded in her lap. This caused another gasp. "You mean you're just gonna stay home and do nothing?"

Blake, unable to look further down than she already was, made a noise that indicated that she was about to say something but stopped prematurely.

Another gasp. Blake thought that this might have been a little too dramatic for Yang to be entirely serious, but she probably did deserve the reprimand with how deep she had buried herself in schoolwork. "You aren't even going home?" Blake shook her head solemnly.

Yang stood up and moved in front of Blake, blocking her view of the city. "Well, that settles it then." The Faunus looked up at her curiously. What settled what? "You'll just have to stay with us for the break."

Blake's brows furrowed. "What?"

"You heard me!" Yang stated resolutely. "You'll just have to stay with Ruby and me for summer break."

"I heard you the first time. I was just checking to make sure I had heard you correctly." The offer was a bit sudden and their break was still a few months away. While the offer did seem generous and made Blake want to smile, she had not expected anything like this. It is not to say that the offer seemed off-putting—quite the opposite, really—but that something so kind and sympathetic had not existed in Blake's life before, thus causing the situation to be all the more foreign.

Yang extended a hand. "So, what do you say?"

Blake stared at gesture then back at its owner. While the thought of spending more time with friends seemed absolutely delightful, the reserved demeanor she strived to uphold would not approve of something like this. She could only think of the disservice she would be doing to Ruby and Yang's break by joining them. She would spend her time reading when the sisters would want to go outside and she would be alone while they caught up with their own friends. She believed that her interests would conflict with theirs. "I'm sorry, Yang, but I just don't think you'd like that."

"Nope," came the immediate, unwavering reply.

"Nope?" Blake thought she had heard this somewhere before.

"Nope," Yang repeated. "You're our friend, Blake. And as your friend, I insist that you spend your summer with us."

"But I'll only be reading for the most part. Yang, you've seen me during the day; there's not much else to me outside of that." She may have been hard on herself, but she believed it to be the truth.

"Nope." Blake could have sworn that she had heard this exact kind of conversation before. "If you stay with us, we'll let you do your own thing and I won't bug you if you don't want me to, but I guarantee you'll have fun if you just join us!" She added a playful wink at the end that, for some reason, caused Blake to rethink her denial for a moment.

"Yang, I don't want to impede on anything you have going—"

Yang cut her off with yet another "Nope." Blake rolled her eyes. She truly was incorrigible sometimes. "I can't leave my battle buddy alone! Whatever happened to 'improving group dynamics?'"

The question was met with no reaction for a few moments as Blake mulled the offer over. Did she want to spend the three months of summer with friends, with people? The answer was obvious; it was either accept her partner's offer or remain at school and hope that she would not be forced to leave for her own home. Blake sighed, shaking her head and only just suppressing a smile. "Fine I'll go." After coming to a realization of where she had heard the speech before, she added, "You really are Ruby's sister, aren't you?"

"No—I mean, yeah!" Yang grinned her signature toothy grin for a few seconds before registering what Blake had said. "Wait. What? You'll come?" In a matter of moments, the glee coming from the taller girl had become positively unrestrained, judging from the way she bounced on the balls of her feet.

Blake smirked. "What, do you need a written RSVP?"

At this, Yang jumped into the air and pumped her fist—an admittedly over-exaggerated gesture, but one that was a very Yang thing to do. "All right!" she exclaimed loud enough that she could have possibly woken just about everyone in this academy. Blake could not help but chuckle. The blonde extended her hand once more. "This is gonna be great!"

With a genuine smile gracing her features, Blake took the offer and was promptly pulled to her feet. Despite the fact that she wore her heeled boots, she was still marginally shorter than her partner. "If you say so," she hummed.

"Oh, it will be," assured Yang with the beginnings of what looked to be a devious, if not excited grin. She glanced once more at the city before looking at Blake and yawning. "C'mon. It's late and we need to get some sleep." While Blake was habitually a night owl, she felt the grip of fatigue closing in on her, causing her to yawn as well. In turn, Yang's grin formed into a smirk. "Besides," she began, "we've gotta be well-rested for what I have planned this summer."

The way Yang had said this was more than slightly disconcerting, but Blake assumed that it was all in good fun. She returned her partner's exuberant smirk with a condescending one of her own. "You do know that our break begins in two months, right?"

"Of course _I_ know. I'm surprised you do. Two months gives me more than enough time for planning." Blake was about to interject with a question as to what the planning was for, but Yang halted this by taking her hand and pulling her away from the cliff. "Time's a wastin' Blakey," she exclaimed, "and I need my beauty sleep!"

The Faunus blushed at the sudden contact and variant of her name, yet she could not bring herself to dispute either one and instead let herself be led by the brash blonde. Even with her practiced balance forged over years of training, the girl in black could not keep from stumbling as Yang rushed towards their dormitory. Blake was not too keen on the less-than-stealthy approach that her partner took, but she would cope. However, this did not mean that she would not worry for school security while they "snuck" back into the school—after all, what were partners for?

The two scurried down the halls like children running from a parent who had nothing against them. For one reason or another, the two were now joyous in the antics they were a part of by staying out after curfew. Previously, something like this would be a nonissue, but with the excitement looming on the solstitial horizon, even the most insignificant of incursions seemed exceedingly criminal. Blake found that Yang held the widest grin she had ever seen while she, herself, held a carefree smile of her own. Gone for the moment was the reclusive and detached former White Fang member and in her place was the happy Blake Belladonna who was legitimately having fun.

When the two reached the entrance of their dorm room, Blake pulled Yang to a halt. It was in this pause that she found herself catching her breath for the first time in a long time, having lost her sense of pacing with the enthusiasm over recent transgressions. When Blake looked to her partner, she found that the blonde appeared as though she could fall asleep standing up despite the energy that yet radiated off her.

The Faunus shook her head at the sight, finding it funny but also finding that it did not warrant a true laugh at this hour. She caught the blonde's attention and whispered, "Yang, we need to be quiet. Ruby and Weiss are still asleep." She was returned with a noncommittal grunt. She added, "And telling Ruby about this can wait until tomorrow. Understood?" Yang drowsily nodded, prompting Blake to pull out her electronic scroll and unlock the door.

As soon as the portal was open, Yang shambled into their room. While she did not make any noise, it was not by her own volition; nothing happened to be in the way of her blind wanderings, and this was incredibly fortunate. Even with inherent night vision, the only thing Blake could see pertaining to Yang was the huge mane of golden hair crawling up onto the upper bunk. To think that the blonde had put on a façade of vitality just to convince her partner into joining her for the summer made Blake's eyes roll.

She saw the sleeping forms of her teammates, blissfully unaware of the two who were still awake. As such, Blake made it a point to be as quiet as possible while she made her way to her bed and found the pajamas she had left folded on her mattress. Knowing that Yang was adjusting herself on her bed or, more likely, asleep, Blake took the opportunity to slip out of her combat attire and into her yukata while no one was watching. In a matter of moments, she was folding her clothes and placing them beneath her bed with the majority of her belongings. After running through a mental checklist of things that should be in order, Blake resigned to her bed.

As her head hit the pillow, the weight of the day prior's happenings began to take their toll on her consciousness as she began to close her eyes. However, before she could drift off to sleep, a faint voice could be heard from directly above her. "Hey, Blake?" Yang whispered, tiredness seeping into every slurred syllable.

"Yeah?"

"I'm really excited about this summer."

Blake smiled warmly at the mattress above her. "Me too."

"And Blake?"

"Mhmm?"

"Thanks for doing this." There was a moment of pause. "It means a lot to me."

An unwitting smile crept across the Faunus' features, happy that Yang was saying this. "Thank you for inviting me. It means a lot to me, as well."

Yang hummed contentedly above. "It's gonna be great," she seemed to say to herself, "I get to spend my entire summer break with my best friend." Blake chalked this up to delirium but nevertheless blushed at her newly given title. "Night, Blake," she heard the muffled voice whisper.

"Goodnight, Yang." At this, the Faunus rolled onto her side, facing the wall. The voice above had ceased its conversation after those departing words, leaving her to believe Yang had finally fallen asleep. While Blake was tired and wanted nothing more than to follow after her partner at that moment, her mind raced, fueled by the promise of that invitation and leaving her wide awake with a perpetual smile. "Best friend," a title previously inapplicable to any individual in her life. She did not believe she deserved the title—she did not believe she deserved to even be called a "friend." Yet she would not complain, and the more she thought about it, the more eager she became to accept Yang's title. Her sentiments went so far as to even apply the title to the blonde as well—Yang was her best friend, too. It had only been months since their first meeting and yet Blake was sure that there was something special between them—something she couldn't quite put into words or past experiences.

To think that what started as an escape from a militant organization and an attempt to do good for the world would turn out to be a decision that would bring her into the company of such great friends was baffling. She had expected to only run from her problems but never lose sight of the strife caused by her association with the White Fang. Between the hospitality of Team RWBY and this newest invitation, memories of her life prior to Beacon were easily washed away and replaced by genuine optimism for what was to come.

She turned so that she could watch the bed above her, gripping elatedly as she silently thanked her partner—no, her best friend. She imagined what they would do over the break, hoping that they would spend their free time in a way much different than she had before. Rather than attending "peace" rallies on mandate, she could spend her time reading. In lieu of gathering intelligence on oppositional forces, she could spend her time with newfound friends. Instead of having the ever-present anxiety of indirectly harming innocent people, she could enjoy the ever-present warmth of living in the now.

She silently thanked Yang once more before succumbing to her exhaustion. Slowly but surely, she slipped into the embrace of sleep, her head filled with dreams of abstract warmth and glee. Blake could, without a doubt, say that tonight's sleep would be a much more enjoyable process without having to dwell on the nightmares of her past. Now she could instead appreciate the dreams of her future with an unconscious smile.

* * *

This chapter (not including author's notes both before and after) amounted to 6,250 words at the time of posting. This is not my attempt at bragging, but my attempt at warning. This chapter is short for me—laughably so in relation to what I usually write. Expect chapter lengths to average out at just above 10,000 words. This chapter is one outlier in the range of chapters and so is the next. The next chapter will be a polarizing one, causing readers to either give up on the story entirely or become somewhat familiar with my style of writing. I don't think many will be prepared for the word count attached to the next chapter—thus is one of the reasons I choose to post on a Thursday: to allow the reader the weekend to read the chapters if they are unable to complete them due to excessive word count. Until then, I direct you to my profile for supplementary information. Stay safe and stay tuned.


	2. Chapter 2: 12 Hours

Wow. I expected some sort of response from the Fanfiction community but it never truly dawned on me how that response would affect me until it actually came. To say that I am thankful would be an understatement. I'm not normally one who likes praise directed at me but the positivity coming from the reviews and the visitor count in the traffic statistics is humbling in the best way possible. Thank you all who took the time to read chapter one. Though, I have to say, that positivity has set a bar for me to strive to achieve in every chapter. While the challenge is healthy, I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't scared. That being said, I'm going to do my best.

I do apologize for this lengthy author's note, but I feel that there is something to be said that needs to be understood for the length and writing of _Valence_. I'd like to preface that I normally do not condone pointing out a review as nothing good can result from it. However, I got a review on this story (Don't react negatively, this explanation turns out positive.) concerning my writing style that brings up a few points that I would like to clarify. I have had friends and colleagues in the past tell me to stop using a thesaurus and to not be flowery for the sake of being flowery. I generally don't use a thesaurus because I know that doing so can be borderline addictive (There was a dark part of my life where I used a thesaurus as a crutch.) and any imagery I write serves both a descriptive and utilitarian purpose. My personal philosophy on writing anything at all is to not censor myself by using words that I wouldn't normally use, be it by dumbing down diction choice or finding the most fitting "big word" that can make me sound smart. I don't use a thesaurus for the majority of my writing; most of what you see is my natural vocabulary (I've always had a fascination with unused words.) and though it may seem excessively flowery or forced, it is certainly not fake. Using the unused words is a part of my writing style and I use them to create a story that I would like to read.

At the same time, I understand that excessive use of unfamiliar words can be uncomfortable to a reader. I take no offense if someone cannot connect to my writing style and decides to leave this story—I tend to do the same thing with writing styles I don't like. However, the argument that the writer should accommodate the vocabulary for the reader is, in my opinion, wrong. If I dumb down the words I use, I undermine the intelligence of the reader. By keeping the unused and "unnatural" words, readers can acquaint themselves with a broader vocabulary thus causing a smarter reader base for—potentially—all of .

Still I can take from this criticism some form of positivity. I've read more than a few fanfictions before writing this story and I have seen that very few writers in the fandoms I have read try to make themselves stand out amongst the crowd through their writing styles. I think that there are two things that will distance myself from the crowd (How fitting for this story.): 1. My vocabulary—while not the most intricate, it is my own. 2. My narrator construct. This second item has reared its head in chapter one and will once again in chapter two, but it will become readily apparent in chapter three as to why my narrator construct differentiates itself from the crowd. In summary, I will not make an attempt to censor myself through using more accessible words when I have a fitting word in mind nor will I truncate a sentence for the sake of digestibility.

Furthermore, I have seen numerous stories with chapter lengths similar to mine with requests for the author to segment the chapter to make it able to be read in a single, convenient sitting. While others may do so, I will not. I see this as a form of censorship upon myself. Every chapter of a novel should have a beginning, middle, and end and have a general purpose and theme for it. My chapters are written this way, so segmenting them would disrupt the flow of the chapter and the importance of the chapter's theme. Even this chapter, as large as it is, has a point throughout it that stayed consistent for the most part. Had I cut this down into four 5,000-word parts, that point would have been lost. The length of my chapters are taken into account for the feel of a chapter. This chapter is intended on being read in one sitting to induce fatigue and familiarity on the part of the reader. Breaking the chapter up into smaller segments would eliminate a feeling of fatigue where it is thematically necessary. Fortunately, I have not had a review tell me to segment my chapters, but I can see it happening, so I am writing this to preemptively take my stance on the subject.

I am sorry if this came across as defensive as it is not intended on being so. This isn't my bashing of the reviewer. Quite the opposite, actually; taking the time to go out of one's way to list the negative characteristics of something takes a certain amount of care. Criticism is criticism, no matter how bold or direct it may be. So, I thank that reviewer because he or she drew attention to a potential flaw in my writing that I am now cognizant of for this story.

Once again, I apologize for this long author's note and am pleased to tell you that it is near its close. I've probably revised this chapter the most out of those I've written so far. I like this chapter, I am proud of this chapter, and I hope you enjoy this chapter as I do. At its time of posting, this chapter numbered 21,904 words without the inclusion of author's notes or Fanfiction's horizontal lines indicating a break. Without further ado, chapter two of _Valence_.

* * *

Chapter 2: 12 Hours

Blake was not roused from her slumber by the warm summer breeze that flowed from the open window nor did she wake from the shuffling of feet, movement of clothes, and the clicks and zips of various travel cases. No, Blake Belladonna—she who could go to sleep later than anyone and still wake up before everyone—could only be woken by her loud, energetic partner. The reason why the blonde was able to awaken the Faunus was not the volume at which she spoke but the fact that she was the one speaking it. Yang, with the amassed excitement caused by the first day of summer break, shouted to the sleeping girl, "Wakey, wakey eggs and Blakey!" at a distance far too close for comfort. This caused an unexpected "eep" from the team leader, but no visible reaction from the intended target.

On technicality, she was awake after that but chose to keep her eyes closed. Partially, this was to convince herself that the previous pun did not exist. Partially, it was out of resentment to someone else trying to wake her. But, for the most part, it was an attempt to reverse the tired state she was currently in; the warm weather simply made her want to doze. She thought about getting up but decided against it. What was the rush, anyway?

"Yang! Keep your voice down! She's trying to sleep!" she heard Weiss scold at a moderately considerate volume. The noises of various belongings moving around became apparent to the "sleeping" Faunus. She thought about what the noises could mean for half a second before abandoning these thoughts in favor of remaining in her ignorant, semi-conscious stupor.

Yang scoffed. "Yeah, that's the point, princess! I'm trying to wake her up!" Blake could hear Weiss huff and could imagine her turning away in disinterest. That is, she did imagine it until she felt her bed buckle from the weight of a newcomer who began softly and incessantly shaking her. "Come on!" she heard Yang exclaim, exuberant as ever. "Up and cat 'em!"

Rolling over onto her other side, Blake faced the wall and internally groaned. She knew Yang was not going to relent with the puns until she was awake, but this discomforted motion seemed to give the blonde pause, effectively ending the motions.

She could hear Yang groan before her sister offered her opinion. "Come on, Yang. Just let her sleep. We aren't in any rush." The young Faunus believed Ruby was being a great leader in this particular instance—she was looking out for the good of her team and was promoting individual achievement over a groupthink mentality, or something like that. Unfortunately, she proved ineffective. The weight on the bed had not shifted.

"Hey, don't worry about it; she told me to wake her up. It's all part of the plan!" She was lying through her teeth and Blake had half a mind to kick the blonde off her bed. She heard the girl hum in open contemplation. This did not bode well in Blake's mind, knowing that whatever machinations Yang thought up would undoubtedly cause her to awaken. Her Faunus ears betrayed her and involuntarily twitched at the thought. The contemplating hum from Yang turned into one of playful malice. "Well," she drawled, "desperate times call for desperate meas-ears."

Blake, now wide awake with both eyes snapped open at the implications of the pun, sat up quickly and pushed herself against the wall and away from Yang's outstretched hand. Breathing quickly and scanning the room rapidly, she blurted out, "All right, I'm awake." She could see that both Ruby and Weiss turned away from the blonde, rubbing the bridges of their respective noses.

Yang, on the other hand, had retracted her arm and put on the toothiest grin she could before greeting, "Well, good morning, beautiful!" She winked and was thusly sent to the floor.

It was far too early to blush or feel flustered, so Blake executed the only idea she deemed rational at the time: she kicked Yang off of her bed. As she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, she looked towards the other two members of her team. "Good morning, Ruby; Weiss."

Weiss simply gave a small smile and nodded her head while Ruby cheered, "Morning, Blake!" The Faunus smiled at the happiness that positively radiated off of the youngest member of the team. However, her smile disappeared as soon as Yang sat back up and rested her chin on the lower bunk, beginning to pout.

"What? No love for me?" she asked, only just holding back crocodile tears.

Blake returned with a glare that harbored no ill will towards its recipient, but nonetheless was intended to look frightening. "You made three terrible jokes, tried to shake me awake, and went for my ears when I was vulnerable. You're lucky I'm acknowledging you right now." While she was slightly peeved about the situation, after looking around the room and realizing what day it was, she was slightly grateful to have been woken up. After all, she had slept in later than she usually did. The clock in the room read 11:00 a.m.

"Aw, don't be like that, partner!" Yang stood up and quickly adopted as confident a stance as she could, hands resting on her hips and eyes directed upwards and off into space. With this, any resemblance to a negative emotion she had previously displayed was now gone. "It's summer break for Pete's sake! So, get up, Blake, and grab what you need to take!"

Exasperated groans came from everyone in the room except Yang who instead held a satisfied grin. "Really?" Blake groused, "Rhymes?" The puns were at least tolerable for the most part, but if Yang continued rhyming, Blake might have just fallen back asleep out of indignation. She shook her head and stood up from her bed.

As she looked around the room, she found a multitude of white suitcases that were identifiably Weiss' and as well two more she believed to be Ruby's. Neither seemed completely finished with their packing. This only led her to believe Yang had not even started with her own, and this was only supplemented by the fact that nobody had cared enough to change out of their pajamas by this point. Blake looked to her partner. "I'm going to take a shower first, then I'm going to get ready to go. By the time I get back, you need to have already started packing." Her words and intentions were resolute and the look she gave Yang carried this point strongly, she believed.

Yang stood up as straight as she could and gave an over-exaggerated salute while exclaiming with a smirk, "Aye aye, Captain Belladonna!"

Blake simply rolled her eyes and suppressed a smile before turning to the dorm room's bathroom. Before entering, however, she gave a look to Ruby and Weiss that could only be given between those who had witnessed and survived an arduous, traumatic battle. She grimly said "Good luck" to the two before entering the bathroom. As she passed, the younger partnership shuddered at these words, but they would just have to deal with Yang's unrestrained excitement. After all, it was the beginning of summer break and Blake needed to get ready.

She brought with her the attire acting as both combat gear and casualwear, purposefully limiting the number of trips she needed to make. As if on instinct, she turned on the shower to let it warm up before looking into the mirror and the black-clad figure beyond. Surprisingly, the sight before her was not of a girl who had woken up from too few hours of sleep but instead one full of energy and uncharacteristic enthusiasm shrouded by a bored facade. Blake knew that even with the pain brought on by the puns and rhymes, she was just as excited as Yang about this summer—on second thought, she believed Yang was relatively composed for how much energy she could be expressing if not on school grounds. Either way, Blake allowed herself a smile as she disrobed and stepped into the shower.

Unlike Yang and Ruby, Blake and Weiss had not fallen victim to the endemic laziness brought on by the end of the year. The sisters had lost interest in their classes long before finals even came to mind; of course, the two never had problems with the more combat-oriented courses, but academic examinations proved trying on their patience. With Blake and Weiss, however, their studiousness carried them all the way through the end of the year. This work ethic allowed them to coast along without troublesome boredom and impatience wearing their spirits down, and, by the time summer arrived, the break came as a pleasant surprise. For the sisters, meanwhile, it was a saving grace long awaited for.

Though, it is not to say Blake did not anticipate the summer. In fact, ever since Yang had offered the chance to spend the break with her, even reading could not sate the young Faunus' boredom. If the blonde had noticed her excitement on the matter (Which she undoubtedly did, as it was fairly obvious in the days leading up to the end of the year.), then she did not show it or tease her partner for it. Blake could only imagine the remarks Yang might offer about how this hidden excitement so contrasted her regular personality or how she would finally break the Faunus of her reticent shell. Yet Blake was not ashamed of her excitement. When one lacks friends for as long as she had, thoughts of what others might think about her wanting to be happy are thrown to the wayside without a moment of consideration.

In this regard, however, Weiss was proving contrary. Blake knew the heiress was at least mildly enthused about the break and had even admitted that she did not have many friends growing up. Of course, she had substituted the word "many" to cover for "any," but no one on Team RWBY choose to judge. While she did have the level of excitement and lack of friends parts down, she was not yet willing to show how excited she was, which was fair in its own right—she could act whatever level of "proper" she wanted to. However, this veiling of enthusiasm had only led to teasing from Yang later on.

After hearing of the blonde's invitation, Ruby, on the other hand, was overjoyed. However, in its standard usage and accepted connotations, the word "overjoyed" acts as an egregious understatement to the level of jubilation which young Ruby Rose exhibited that day. She had acted in much the same way Yang had in the days following the offer's acceptance, albeit in a speedier, more overzealous manner. This entailed telling either Blake or Yang the places they would visit—with names she supposed Blake was familiar with—what they were going to do, and always ending with how much fun they were going to have. Eventually, the gears that had begun to spin in the young girl's mind about how she was to lead her team to fun allowed her to remember one critical error and devised a plan to rectify it.

It had taken a surprisingly low amount of effort to convince Weiss to join the rest of her team. From what she had said, there were some issues going on back home which she did not care to attend to, and being away from them would suit both herself and her father best. No one on the team asked anything more and instead welcomed the heiress with open arms, finding that despite her distance and cold, she held a certain respect for her teammates. It was at this point that an overenthusiastic Ruby exclaimed, "Team RWBY is going to Vale!" This then caused Weiss to shoot her down by saying they already had gone to Vale on multiple occasions.

While it is true the entire team had gone to Vale before, they had only been around the Vytal Tournament and were unable to attend the festival proper. This had been Blake's only experience in the city. She expected the sisters to have been familiar with the area since they lived there and had attended Signal Academy and she also expected Weiss to have at least visited before since it was the kingdom's capital and thusly the epicenter for all business in the region. This caused the young Faunus' view on the city to be completely based on the time she had spent in it during the tournament and its surrounding days, and even though the beginning was marred by her disagreement with Weiss, she found that she quite liked the locale. Though, from the view alone atop her favorite cliff, she knew she had not even scratched the surface of what Vale had to offer. The city was huge.

This meant the claims Yang and Ruby made about how much fun they were all going to have plausibly could come to fruition. Judging by the number of places Ruby had named with proper nouns, the ever-expanding itinerary of excitement had the definite potential of happening. While this list had fueled Blake's hopes for the break ahead, it seemed to have put off Weiss, although Blake believed this to be a form of masking her own excitement.

While the heiress was normally the sort of person to welcome rules, regulations, and plans, she had stated on numerous occasions before that having Ruby plan the entirety of their summer would be a hazard to their health. Of course, neither Ruby nor Yang intended to do so. Rather, it was implied the schedule would be democratic as all friendships are in that if someone wanted to do something, she would simply suggest it to the group and then the group would decide. The sisters' respective ideas were simply that: ideas.

No matter what, though, all ideas prior to their arrival in the city could only be speculations and would doubtlessly change after they landed. That was what added to the mystery, to the adventure Blake desired. Even if she had said the real world was not the same as a fairy tale, she still wanted an adventure akin to those in the many stories she had read over the years. It was from this hope of adventure and fun and friends that she could smile unabashedly and feel no shame for being excited. This did not mean her reserved personality would leave her by any means. No, this simply meant she could be a little happier while upholding her reserved look.

The sound of cascading water slowed to a trickle as Blake stepped out of the shower, feeling ready for the day ahead and more accepting of Yang's earlier actions. She figured the blonde had acted in her partner's best interests despite the lacking quality of her jokes. Still, the rhymes might have been a bit much. Blake redressed into her combat attire and folded her sleepwear. She had to make sure she was more than ready for today because the majority of their expected activities would be travel-related and thus draining on her energy. Seeing as how the airship ride would take, at minimum, six hours and, having factored in waiting for the ship to depart and the time it would take to retrieve their luggage after, Blake figured the group's sunk cost would be at least eight hours. As such, she wasted no time and began her morning ritual of hygienics as she stared into the mirror.

Once Blake was finished, she stepped out of the bathroom and found that only one person had finished packing. The air of content smugness positively radiating from Weiss' smirk could not be ignored—even when she had six suitcases to fill, she had still been the first one finished and seemed to lord this fact over her teammates. While still not technically finished, however, Ruby looked ready to leave at a moment's notice. She had one suitcase already filled, latched, and placed near the door while her second was left open to reveal foam padding with a rectangular mold in it. Blake could only assume it was meant for Crescent Rose, which Ruby was currently nuzzling as though she would never see it again.

The final member of the team was meanwhile in the midst of packing, living up to the promise she had made. Yang was currently throwing everything of hers that she could find into her suitcase haphazardly. It was with this action that Blake noticed something, for lack of a better term, off about the girl in yellow. It was not a change in mannerisms or mood, per se. but instead one of attire. Gone was the padded, reinforced jacket Blake had seen her wear all year and in its place was one that looked almost identical to the other, only without as much protective gear sewn into it. It looked to be a lighter, more casual jacket which was worn over her regular combat attire. It was a hardly noticeable difference, but it seemed to make the already carefree girl seem even more easygoing.

With this delayed revelation, Blake looked around the room once more and found that Weiss, too, had changed her regular attire in a not-too-obvious way. She was missing her own jacket, as well, leaving her in what looked to be a sort of summer dress which was almost identical to the attire she usually wore. Meanwhile, Ruby had not changed, probably due to the fact that the young scythe-wielder was always ready for a fight. This, coupled with the fact that she probably did not want to lose track of her weapon or cloak, allowed Blake to relate with the duality of her own attire as both combat-ready and casual.

Soon enough, her observations would be slowed to a halt when Weiss spoke up. "Are you just going to stand there and smile all day, Blake? Don't you realize we have a schedule to adhere to?" Even after the incident concerning Blake's Faunus heritage and the subsequent reparations thereof, the heiress was still able to nag at her like nothing had ever happened. But she was right, albeit a bit rude in her presentation.

Blake stepped over to her bed, passing her enthusiastic partner who quickly sent a self-satisfied grin for following orders before returning to her duties. Blake allowed herself to smile softly as she reached under her bed for her suitcase. As soon as she pulled it out and placed it on her mattress, however, it unlatched itself, but unlike the first night in the dorm, nothing spilled out. After the first time, Blake had displaced the rest of her belongings so they would not be damaged in a future incident like this, and while she did only move them to either the bathroom or underneath the bed, the fact of the matter was that her belongings would be safe until she dealt with the pesky latch again. Unfortunately, she would have to deal with the pesky latch today.

She pulled all of her belongings except for school uniforms out from beneath her bed and quickly placed them in her suitcase. Unlike the rest of her teammates, Blake did not bring too many superfluous items of clothing, instead opting for several replicas of her usual attire. She reasoned that if she were going to attend a combat academy, then she would need to bring as many copies of her combat gear as she could. Additionally, she had believed her time at Beacon would solely consist of schoolwork and battle and little else, and despite how wrong she had been proven, her meager wardrobe seemed to have sufficed.

After packing her clothes, she moved to the bookshelf between the team's bunks and picked out a few novels she had planned to read over the break and even a few she was unwilling to leave behind. She eventually decided only ten books—this number, however, was only meant to be the perceived amount. Unbeknownst to the others, she was bringing along two extras and kept them hidden on her person until she reached her suitcase. One was a novel of questionable subject matter while the other was a diary masked as a large, hardcover book with a title written in an almost dead language. The idea for the latter was that nobody on her team would so much as attempt to look at it due to its appearance of difficulty. Specifically, this measure was set up for her partner.

Blake ran a mental checklist to find what else she needed and found in a matter of moments that there was nothing left that she deemed necessary for the extent of her vacation. As she stood, she heard a loud banging noise off to her side and quickly turned to its source. What she found was Yang jumping on her own suitcase which seemed to be overfilled. What was worse was that she seemed to be enjoying the endeavor.

For some reason or another, be it the copious inefficiency displayed or the potential for the blonde to hurt herself, Blake felt the need to speak up. "Yang?" she asked hesitantly, hoping that if she could speak in a quiet, reserved voice, she would not cause the blonde to fall.

"Yeah?" her partner returned, almost completely preoccupied with her packing that she had not realized her volume was that of a shout.

Blake's ears twitched at the sudden rise in volume. "Do you need any help? If you do, I'd be happy to lend a hand." She had no idea how she could actually help if Yang was having trouble, but she felt it would only be fair to offer.

"Nah," Yang drawled. "I've got it, Blake! Don't worry about m—whoa!" At this, she nearly fell flat on her face; that is, she would have, had it not been for her partner's quick reflexes. What resulted was Blake catching Yang before she could fall and causing the blonde to grip onto her partner in a hold that nearly resembled a hug. This almost-hug quickly turned into a real, rib-crushing hug as Yang lifted Blake off of her feet whilst proclaiming, "My hero!"

It took only a second for the contact to fluster Blake and the residual air in her lungs to fail her. "Yang, put me down. Please, we still need to pack."

It was then that Weiss interjected. "Speak for yourselves. I actually have time to waste now that I'm finished."

This was followed with Ruby's own, "Yeah, speak for yourselves!" Weiss looked about ready to commend her partner before seeing that the girl yet cuddled her weapon. "I just need a few more minutes with my baby," she cooed. "Just a few more minutes."

Yang released her hold on Blake, causing the girl to drop and struggle to regain both her balance and breath. The blonde knew her partner was unable to rebuke this statement due to a current lack of oxygen, and, as such, she moved to defend the Faunus. "Pipe down, princess. Not all of us had as much time as you did to pack." She glanced at Blake. "On top of that, we don't have as many cases as you do to put all our stuff in." She pointed to her own case, which had flung itself open with the lack of anyone jumping on it.

"Well, excuse me for not sleeping away most of the morning. And if you must know, most of my cases are holding Dust—highly _explosive_ Dust," Weiss retorted and sent a look to Ruby who was still unaware of the world outside of Crescent Rose. "I'd rather not blow up the airship on the way there. What about you? Hmm?"

"Well, why are you carrying around Dust, then? We're only going on summer break." Apparently, the snark found in the heiress' question was unable to deter her aggressor. "We're coming back here in a few months, anyways. It's not like we'll need it 'til then."

Weiss crossed her arms and looked away. "I don't trust anyone here to not steal any of my Dust." She then turned back to Yang. "Furthermore, if my fa—"

She was cut off by a loud, strained clicking noise. Both girls turned to find Blake standing by Yang's suitcase, now closed. If one were to look closely, one would see faint beads of sweat on her forehead and the remote beginnings of a self-satisfied smirk. However, Yang was not looking at her but what she had done. "Wha—How?"

Blake gave an externally apathetic shrug as she stepped away from the now closed suitcase. "I didn't jump on it," she stated in an equally indifferent manner. Internally, however, she was cheering herself for what she had done.

Yang sent a playfully annoyed glare. "My hero," she stated in a tone mirroring Blake's supposed indifference. The girl in black smirked and rolled her eyes, causing Yang to perk up and replace her glare with a grin as she turned back to Weiss. "All right. I guess that solves the packing problem." She looked to Blake. "You ready to go?" The energy radiating from her grin was far too infectious for Blake to suppress a smile of her own. She nodded.

"In that case," Weiss began before clapping her hands twice in quick succession.

There was a short pause wherein Blake and Yang simply looked at her like she was insane. However, they would quickly be interrupted as the room's door was flung open to reveal seven older men in suits, all wearing immaculate white ties. They stood at either side of the entryway with their hands clasped behind their backs as the eldest among them moved towards Weiss.

"Lady Schnee, how may we be of service?" Blake thought them to be butlers at first, but, judging by their arrival right as the team was ready to depart, she reasoned that they were Weiss' personal porters. With this in mind, Blake thought that she had seen two of the porters on her first day at Beacon, not these seven. Meanwhile, Yang simply gawked at the sudden intrusion while Ruby yet focused her attention on her scythe.

Weiss cleared her throat and smirked for a moment before suppressing the emotion. Blake thought the heiress might have been having too much fun being back in her element. "You may take our luggage down to the airship docks and prepare our belongings for the flight." At this, the porters were set in motion.

Four began to move Weiss' suitcases with the utmost care and with probable knowledge that they held either invaluable Dust or the infinitely priceless Myrtenaster. Ruby did not seem fazed by the rapid movements around her as she hugged the folded scythe one last time before placing it in the foam-lined case—Blake thought the girl could burst out in tears at any second! After Ruby closed the case on her scythe, she stood up as tall as she could, trying to diminish any possible signs of hesitation before handing both of her suitcases to a porter. As the man left, Ruby truly did burst into tears as she waved and exclaimed, "Goodbye, my love! I will see you soon! I promise!" Blake watched as Weiss' face flushed out of what she believed to be embarrassment from having Schnee family workers see what the young heiress had become a part of. However, it is to be said that as deductive and observational as Blake may be, her rationalizations for others' apparent emotions are not always correct.

The Faunus knelt down before her own luggage, making sure everything in order for the trip to come. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw one porter struggling to pull Yang's suitcase out of the room, failing to even bring it off the ground. The stronger blonde patted him on the back and gave words of encouragement all the while, teasing him from what her partner could tell. Blake rolled her eyes at the energetic girl's antics.

By the time she ensured everything she would need was present, she was able to close the latch on her luggage, carefully as not to ruin her efforts. While the case did close, it felt weak—as though it would not hold. As she stood, she watched the latch and noticed small motions that managed to shake the normally collected girl. When she could manage to distract herself from the broken fastening, however, she sensed a presence standing behind her.

"May I take your bag, Lady Belladonna?" the voice of a porter asked.

Ignoring the honorific for the moment, the girl gingerly lifted her suitcase in a consistent horizontal position and handed it off as such to the man. Before she let go, she told him, "The latch on it isn't working correctly, so be careful. It has a tendency to open when vertical."

"Absolutely, Lady Belladonna. We were prepared for such an event and will be able to rectify this situation." He added with a smile, "Do not worry. Your belongings are safe with us."

Blake smiled back and thanked him before he departed. He was the last one who carried luggage to leave the room and thusly closed the door behind him. As soon as the door shut completely, Yang whirled around on her heel and looked at Blake with a still-confused expression. "Well, that was a thing."

In turn, Blake slowly looked to the heiress before asking, "Weiss, why did he know my name? And why was he prepared for my latch to be broken?"

The girl in question turned away and murmured something. Yang, who practically stood the same distance from her as Blake did, could not hear what she had said; however, due to the Faunus' enhanced hearing from beneath her concealing bow, she could accurately make out what Weiss had said—that is, "Because I wrote home about you all."

Due to Ruby's close proximity to her partner, she was also able to hear the utterance and had consequently been distracted from her mourning. She now grinned widely and lifted Weiss off her feet in a hug not dissimilar to the one Yang had given earlier, shouting, "She likes us! She really, really likes us!" Considering all of the over-exaggerated exclamations Ruby had made throughout the day so far, Blake began to think that summer had already gotten to the young girl.

Weiss seemed to think much the same, if in a markedly more negative light—one pertaining to the potential degradation of the young girl's common sense and even sanity. "Ruby Rose, put me down this instant!" Immediately, the young leader complied and looked not at all ashamed for it. As soon as Weiss was able to stand on her own, she pretended to dust off her dress and acted like nothing had happened while the coloration on her features proved quite the opposite.

"Anyways," Blake drawled. The room was, for the most part, empty, barring the remaining collection of books, an assortment of posters and paintings, and the multitude of disheveled beds. Despite all this, the room seemed empty, and not in a sentimental way but more so in a way that told her it was time to leave. So, she said exactly that. "I think it's time we get moving. There's nothing left for us to do here, is there?"

Her response came in the form of Yang hooking her arm through Blake's own while saying, "I like how you think, partner," before pulling her out the door. As she left the dorm room, she exclaimed, "Onwards and upwards!"

Moments later, Weiss could be seen pulling Ruby out by her cloak.

* * *

All at once, the bated release of summer break descended upon Team RWBY as the dormitory's doors were thrown open and this first day's warmth met them kindly. In that moment, all the stresses of school, social ranking, and worries about the past went up in thankful flames as the golden sun temporarily blinded the young Faunus girl.

The immediate radiance prickled her skin for a comfortably still moment before the combination of heat and breeze created a paradoxically cool warmth, inspiring a renewed vigor and bringing a quiet smile to Blake's lips. The light humidity clung to her skin not even for a second and allowed her to acclimate quickly to the southern climate of her impending few months. A light, feeble breeze blew across her features, cooling the heat imposed upon her and moving the fabric of her clothes and as well any unsecured locks of hair. It was in this breeze that the scent of freshly mowed grass and the sounds of distant cheering and chatter were brought before her. It was in this moment of sensory epiphany that Blake knew the world was vivid and alive and welcoming. She knew she could open her eyes again and be unaffected by the initially brash introduction to this new season.

What she saw was no longer the impenetrable wall of white light but instead a calming, welcoming, cyan sky which seemed to glitter from one horizon to the other. While the sun could not be seen from beneath the dormitory's height, its presence was absolute from the vibrancy of the surrounding campus and to the severe lack of shadows. This lack of shade admittedly frightened Blake to an extent, having no place to turn to if she had to resort to her semblance, but it also calmed her in a way; it reminded her that she probably would not need to use her semblance, anyway. As she gazed across the long concrete promenade which extended to the docks, she could see friends and their respective teammates wishing each other farewell, tearful and excited. This idea of splitting up a team for a three-month recess seemed foreign to the girl in black, but, then again, much had been foreign to her ever since initiation.

She was pulled from her reverie by a tug on her arm and an exclamation of, "C'mon, Blake! Our ride's here!" before being forced into a run by her energetic partner.

Blake shook off her hesitation and began to cooperate, choosing to run alongside her partner without complaint. However, as she regained her focus, she felt the necessity to ask, "Yang, why are we running? We still have time until the ship leaves."

This was returned with a toothy grin. "We have to get the best seats before somebody else gets 'em." It was strange to think, but something about this expression seemed to hint at an ulterior motive on the part of its owner, but Blake paid the thought no attention, choosing instead to accept the reason and freely run beside her friend.

She could not help but smirk at the over-confident, over-excited face her partner was making. The blonde had not once shown this sort of enthusiasm before, either in a classroom or in the midst of a heated battle. Seeing this expression now, Blake knew the girl beside her wanted only to go home and begin her summer break, getting away from all the projects and battles and essays and whatnot. Needless to say, the enthusiasm radiating from the girl was infectious.

It took only a minute for the two to reach the docks. Holding a hand above her eyes, Yang scanned the area in search of a city-bound airship. How she was able to do this or how she intended to differentiate one ship from the twenty others at such a distance as this, Blake was unsure; however, with a sudden "Aha!" and a pointed finger from the blonde, the young Faunus was quickly proven pessimistic. It was not too long of a walk from where they had stood on the promenade to the sixth ship down the line, and entry onto the airstrip offered no resistance whatsoever since they carried no luggage. The conductor welcomed the two aboard with a smile and opened the door for them without needing any identification at all. The only challenge Blake foresaw by this point was the search for seats which was to come.

As large a school as Beacon was, Blake was surprised to find the ship relatively empty. There were no true clusters of people nor did there seem to be any real conversations occurring outside of cordial small talk, but perhaps they had simply arrived a bit early. Yang, still having her arm linked with Blake's, pulled the Faunus to a corner of the airship where empty seats were arranged in sets of two, creating purposeful spaces for teams to gather. She still carried that grin that seemed to become more wolfish as time wore on as she unlinked their arms and sat down on the seat closest to both the back wall and the window.

Blake quickly glanced over her shoulder which resulted in Yang telling her, "Come on! Sit down. They'll be here any minute." She patted the seat next to her.

Blake had been prepared to engage in some sort of conversation to pass the time until Ruby and Weiss arrived but found that by the time she had taken her seat, her partner was staring out the window beside her—almost wistfully if her now faded grin meant anything. This was odd for the blonde girl who had always gone out of her way to strike up a conversation whenever she was alone with Blake. Now she was simply silent—which the young Faunus usually admired—but she was silent to an almost uncharacteristic degree. It was concerning in a way, but there was nothing Blake could do to help it. For all the support Yang gave, she was surprisingly difficult to lend assistance to. Perhaps this was due to personal pride or perhaps mere habit, but whatever the case, the young Faunus knew that whatever emotion this wistful look displayed would inevitably be remedied on its own. Such was Yang's character.

However, Blake could not help but continue staring at her partner. There was something about her that inexplicably caught the Faunus' eye, and thus Blake watched the girl's lilac orbs drift back and forth, lazily watching the horizon in a slow, uninterested manner—she believed Yang was portraying boredom rather elegantly, if she was to admit. There was little doubt Blake found her partner attractive in a few regards; to say the very least, she thought the way Yang concealed her incredible strength with unsuspecting beauty was impressive, something Blake, herself, hoped to achieve one day. Additionally, the fact that this radiant blonde could turn any negative into a positive was more than appealing for a girl so consumed by past mistakes.

Romance had always been a novel idea for Blake. Ever since her impromptu departure from the White Fang, she came to believe that the only thing left in her life was to become a huntress so to rectify the mistakes she had once made. It was a thankless job, a nameless job, and it directly benefited society as a whole rather than a singular group's ideology. Moreover, she believed there was a certain justice in risking her life now, fighting impossible creatures with but a sword and a pistol and somehow proving she was worthy of a beloved title. However, it was Yang alone who proved there was more to offer than pain at Beacon Academy—in the nine short months Blake had known her partner, Yang had personally reintroduced her to friendship, life-endangering antics, and even happiness.

And while Blake still thought a relationship was impossible for herself, she harbored unadmitted feelings for her partner nevertheless. The principle cause for her attraction could not be pinpointed to any single matter; rather, it is to say these sentiments came into being at one definite point and have grown ever since. After that night on the cliff not two months ago, the young Faunus had felt her partner had become something more than just a friend. Perhaps this was due to their relatively new titles of "best friends," but Blake knew better. She had had months to consider the storm hidden beneath her calm, and it was glaringly evident that these unrequited sentiments were more affectionate than friendly—much more, in fact. It is to say that in the days leading up to their break, these feelings had risen to a fever pitch as the blonde's admirable qualities became more pronounced with their shared excitement.

Excluding her since abandoned parents, there was not a soul on Remnant who had cared for Blake like Yang did. The world knew her as a terrorist, a student, a huntress-in-training, but never Blake Belladonna. However, Yang had treated her like she would anyone else and had gone so far as to befriend the young Faunus despite her prior titles—she did not care about past atrocities or regretted politics, only Blake. Of course, the rest of Team RWBY had accepted her much the same, but it was Yang who had been the first and was still the most endearing.

During the year, Blake had come to realize it was not only her and Yang's battle tactics that contrasted and complimented each other but as well their respective personalities. It was in this balance of energetic and collected, outgoing and reserved, and impatient and patient that Blake found her partner to be, quite frankly, the most tolerable person in the whole school. Their friendship had eventually reached the point where some of Yang's characteristics had rubbed off on her, although not many, while the inverse was equally true. Currently, the blonde was sitting still, gazing out her window, and patiently waiting for their teammates to arrive. It was obvious she was still anxious, judging by her seemingly immovable frown, but she showed an incredible amount of patience nevertheless. However, because of this patience, Blake was left without a dissuading factor to keep her from staring.

Without much consideration, she watched Yang absently stroke the mane of golden hair draped over her shoulder; she watched those brilliant lavender orbs scan the horizon and their owner's foot tap an inaudible beat, dreaming about what it would be like to assist in these combing efforts. There was an energy to the blonde which Blake could not define. It had a pulling effect, a disarming effect, and, most alarmingly, it was utterly enthralling. In fact, the young Faunus had been so absorbed in the warmth of her partner's eyes that she did not see until it was much too late that the blonde had turned to face her, locking lavender orbs with ones of gold. Blake could not help but blush. Yang could not help but smirk.

"Hey, Blake?" The girl in question had expected some sort of teasing remark, but the tentative sincerity in Yang's speech was nothing short of surprising. Blake looked up, unable to restrain the burning in her cheeks. "Thanks for doing this," Yang said. "I know I said it before, but you choosing to come with us really means a lot to me."

"It's not a problem," Blake dismissed. "Really." She consciously fought to reduce her blush but was failing miserably by way of her partner's energy.

"No, really. Thank you. I mean, I like Ruby and all—don't get me wrong, she's a great sister!—but sometimes…Sometimes she can be a little much. You know what I mean?" Blake did not have a chance to respond. "It's just that…" she sighed. "It's only been the two of us for a while and I've taken care of her for as long as I can remember." She hung her head in apparent shame. "I mean, I love my little sister to death, but…" Again, Yang sighed and hunched over.

"But you're tired of it being only you and her," Blake completed. "Is that it?" It took a bit of an effort to ignore her embarrassed color, but the young Faunus was able to place a comforting hand on her partner's back, prioritizing Yang's frustration over her own temporary bashfulness. For a fraction of a second, the blonde looked surprised before smiling back.

"Yeah, I guess," she said. "Me and Ruby haven't had friends over in a long time with me being a little protective and her being…well, Ruby." She gave a short, sad-sounding chuckle. "I feel like if we'd gone another summer just by ourselves, we'd end up at each other's throats or something." Yang's gaze lowered to the floor. "I'm sorry if this sounds selfish, but I'm really glad you came along."

From what Blake could see, it appeared as though her partner was about to break down in tears, but, then again, Yang was strong—crying simply did not fit her character. Regardless, she seemed frustrated and Blake was compelled to help. Although the intended action was similarly uncharacteristic to the girl in black and although she did not know how to properly execute it, she reached out and pulled Yang into as warm a hug as she could. Just as quickly, Yang hugged back, nestling herself into the place between the Faunus' neck and shoulder.

Such a public display of affection was something Blake had never cared to be associated with, yet here she was hugging her partner in a passenger airship. Fortunately, her blush had faded by this point and did not return since this contact was both necessary and of her own volition. There was something about this closeness that struck a chord in her mind and made this embrace feel existentially gratifying. "It's all right," she soothed, surprised by her own words. "There's nothing to be ashamed about. You two need your personal space but have been unable to find it. That's normal, Yang—everyone needs their space. You've been a great sister from what I can tell, and Ruby seems just as excited about Weiss coming. You two needed a change in your lives, a change in routine, and I think this summer will accomplish that."

She could feel Yang's lips curl into a thankful smirk against her shoulder. The blonde shook slightly as she laughed, "You have no idea." She then pulled away, grasping Blake's arms and thanking her with an ecstatic gleam in her lilac eyes. "This is going to be the best summer ever. For all of us." At this, she pulled Blake into a hug of her own, this one tighter and markedly more experienced than the Faunus'. Unfortunately, Blake's blush returned as she was pulled into the golden mane, not because the action of a hug, not from the heat exuded by Yang, but simply because of the gleam in her eyes.

By this point, Blake had relaxed to their current form of contact, accepting it calmly and not a small bit eagerly. It felt oddly trusting in a way and just as disarming as her partner's usual warmth. She found that the golden locks were as soft as she had expected and the strong arms wrapped around her were gentle with their enthusiasm. However, she could only maintain this level of interest if the situation surrounding them were to stay discrete. Unfortunately, it seemed her affection could never be.

"Aww! You look so _cute _together!"

It became immediately apparent that Ruby and Weiss had arrived. Because Blake was already flushed before her leader's interruption, she was unable to tell whether the renewed tingle in her cheeks' came from her own heightened embarrassment or Yang's. Yang, being one to house an aura manifested in heat, had a tendency to increase the temperature around her if she could not keep certain emotions in check. One such emotion was embarrassment, and now saw the young Faunus consumed by this nervous heat.

"Break it up, you two, before you make me sick," nagged the chiding voice that could only come from Weiss. Sure enough, when the two broke from their hug, both were sporting crimson as they found their lost teammates. They did not have time to apologize before the other partnership took its seats. Ruby sat beside the window and immediately began scanning the horizon, albeit in a much more excited way than Yang had, while Weiss sat on the outer seat with arms crossed and a glare focused on the blonde. "Explain yourselves."

Blake was surprised to find Yang struggling with her words. "Wha—I—Umm—We, uh…"

Weiss groaned. "Not that. I don't care what you do in your free time; tell me why you ran off."

The blonde laughed sheepishly as she played with her hair. "Well, you see…" she started before looking to Blake. In turn, the Faunus motioned her eyes down towards the seats. Yang turned back to Weiss. "We were reserving our seats…?"

The heiress sighed and shook her head. "Fine," she resigned. Despite her word, the way she had said it and the look on her face made it apparent she did not believe Yang. This made Blake question their regrettably faulty logic in rushing, as well. While she did trust her partner and had consciously chosen to run away with her, the suddenness with which Yang pulled her into an airship to escape their teammates was indeed odd. However, these musings on the subject were cut short by another voice.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking," squawked a voice from the speakers around the cabin. The new voice caused Blake to refocus herself, Weiss to let out an indignant huff, Ruby to face forward in her seat, and Yang to let out a sigh of relief. "The current time is 11:47 a.m. We are scheduled to take off in fifteen minutes for the city of Vale. Due to barrier restrictions, our E.T.A. is approximately 6:30 p.m." This remark caused Yang and Ruby to sigh dejectedly, be it due to the amount of patience required for the trip or perhaps due to their supposed inability to start on their itinerary of fun tonight.

It was then that Ruby gasped, causing all members of her team to look at her, ready to remedy any problem which might have arisen. "Has anyone seen Jaune? He's gonna miss the flight!" In an instant, Blake and Yang relaxed at the anticlimactic crisis, both very much indifferent on the matter. Meanwhile, one of Weiss' eyes visibly twitched.

Her sister waved it off. "Pyrrha invited him over to continue his _training_." She air-quoted the word and shook her head. "Me and her were talking about it, and she seemed super excited about having him over and introducing him to her folks. Funny thing is Jaune probably believes her or something. I bet she has something big planned—you know, _not_ fighting stuff." As the rest of her team accepted the information, Yang took the opportunity to glance at her partner before looking away when Blake caught her. As brief as the look was, the Faunus had a sneaking suspicion the girl was up to something.

"Yeah, it's kinda sad, really," added Ruby. "I mean, anytime we even put them in a sentence together, they just change the subject. He even freaks out when we mention she's his partner!" Blake was surprised at the transition Ruby had made from her earlier, energetic self. If she had to guess, she would say the young girl was aware of the patience required of this flight and thus paced herself accordingly for both her benefit and her team's.

Weiss scoffed. "Honestly, I don't understand what she sees in him. She's the pillar of their team and he's…Personally, I think he's done something to her. I wouldn't put it past him to drug her."

"That's a little harsh, don't you think?" Blake asked. "You may not like Jaune, but he's a nice person—a bit naïve—but a nice person nevertheless. I think that what Pyrrha sees in him is strictly her business." She looked to Yang. "Though, I think you're right. She probably does have something planned if she invited him to her home."

Yang smiled a toothy smile before saying, "Plus, I don't think Jaune's the only one who's naïve about this whole thing. After Pyrrha realizes that he _actually_ came to train, she's probably gonna forget about all her plans. But hey, either way, something's gonna happen."

"Yang, let them have their fun. It's their summer and what they do is none of our business," said Blake. Then, however, she adopted a small, if not mischievous smirk of her own. "Though, if they don't come back as a couple, that only means we can discuss it with them after the break." As she had hoped, this elicited an excited smile from her co-conspirator and another indignant scoff from the heiress.

The conversation dissipated after this as the group resigned to taking to their own methods of passing time. Ruby and Yang stared out of the window, Weiss simply sat with her arms crossed and eyes closed, and Blake took the time to look around the cabin again. Time slowly ticked away as the minutes leading up to takeoff stretched into a bored eternity, but as soon as the engines whirred into eager life, a renewed enthusiasm seemed to spread throughout the passengers' minds. Unlike her partner, Weiss' demeanor did not change at the new sound and motion. Ruby was positively giddy, bouncing in her seat and grinning at her sister. Likewise, Blake looked over to find Yang smiling warmly at nothing in particular—though, she could have sworn the blonde was looking at her out of the corner of her eye.

The airship climbed at a comfortably quick rate, causing the students within to feel the slight downwards pull and smile for it. The liftoff and taxiing processes took only a few minutes to slow before the ship drifted gradually forwards. And as the transport climbed to cruising altitude and speed and as the engines' drone became a commonplace nonissue, the students' voyage truly began.

Although Blake could not see the land directly below her, she could see the Forest of Forever Fall slowly leave her sight as the airship ascended. However, it was in this sight that she also saw her partner staring dreamily out at the autumnal hues. Blake allowed herself a soft smile. Perhaps her preconception from the beginning of the year was wrong—friendship could be beneficial and not the risk she had initially believed. The view of that golden mane, those vivid violet eyes, and their owner's perennially warm expression inspired a confidence that indeed most of the preconceptions she had brought to Beacon were wrong. In this sight, Blake saw that solitude might not be the only option for her.

If one were to put their ear against the window, they would be able to hear rapid gusts of wind only attributable to a fast-moving vehicle. However, due to the school's protective barrier, the shifting horizon slowed to a crawl despite the ship's relativistic high speed. Surprisingly, the sluggish movements did not affect either of the excitable sisters but instead the young Faunus.

Blake, who was used to quick, stealthy movements in combat and having to deal with a rambunctious partner and best friend, found herself growing anxious as the time passed. She had been the same way on the ride to Beacon: bored beyond belief and irritated at the slowing barrier. She found flaws behind the logic of maintaining this shield, being that it was intended to protect hunters and huntresses who could easily fight back, but she could understand the faculty's excuse as well. Rather to have students located in one monitored place than have them cause potential trouble in the city below. For the most part, these students were harmless, but this was precisely the reason why Professor Goodwitch wanted them safe from the dangers of Torchwick and the ever-troublesome White Fang. Regardless, it was to be a six-hour flight and Blake had nothing to read.

In her boredom, she looked to her other teammates who seemed to be in different forms of meditative trances. Weiss still sat with her eyes closed and arms folded while Ruby and Yang continued to look out the window, Yang once again tapping her foot to an inaudible beat.

Blake sighed and weighed her options. She could stay awake and deal with her boredom, hating every minute of the impending hours. She could also try to converse with her teammates, but she assumed this would disrupt their trances and unintentionally cause them to suffer with her. The final option she considered was to take a nap, but that would entail completely letting her guard down around others. The insecurities which arose from her time with the White Fang had not yet settled to mere memories, making her hesitant to sleep in the company of others. This had been a problem during the first few nights at the academy.

However, her team had eventually been accepted as genuinely safe. There was only one instance where they had displayed anything other than geniality to her, and Weiss was still trying to make amends for it. Their accepting personalities allowed Blake to feel secure and even guarded to an extent. All of her teammates were more than competent fighters who always kept their weapons close, and, as such, she felt that if a situation were to arise, they would not turn tail and run like those in the White Fang would have.

With this in mind, Blake decided upon a nap as her best option; the others would surely understand. She did not alert anyone as she reclined slightly in her chair and closed her eyes, hoping that when she opened them next, they would have touched down. Darkness encroached upon her already sedated vision. Admittedly, she was cold without a blanket but was undeterred and took comfort in the radiating aura beside her as she slipped into a light slumber.

* * *

There was an incredibly comforting sensation that ran through Blake's mind. She was awake, but only slightly so, choosing to keep her eyes shut as she had that morning. The sensation was constant and warming, soft yet thorough, and it caused her to make a sound she had strived for so long—years, if her count was correct—to not make around anyone.

Blake purred.

This seemed to halt whatever the sensation was for only a moment. Fortunately, however, the warm feeling would soon return with an even greater fervor, allowing the Faunus to smile blindly at the comforting motion. She could not tell exactly what the sensation was nor could she hear who or what was causing it; the only things she could focus on were the feeble purrs she failed to suppress and the rhythmic action which caused them. It took a moment, but she would eventually will herself to open her eyes halfway to search for the source of this contentment, and when she did, she found that the majority of her senses returned to suboptimal levels. The first thing she noticed in this willing stupor was that the calming sensation came from a warm entity beside her and a particularly gentle scratching at the base her bow. This revelation brought her senses to a new, heightened state.

While she did not move from the unexpected hold, she became suddenly aware of every other event and figure in her immediate vicinity. She could see that Weiss and Ruby were not in their seats; though, their presences were nearby from what she could hear. Yang, however, was still in her own seat and had been the one scratching her partner's ears.

The young Faunus found herself in a muddled state of confusion, worry, and blissful comfort. Even if she was comfortable with sleeping around her teammates, this forward action was surprising to say the very least. Had the action not been so soothing, then she would have believed it uncouth and thus strayed from her partner's grip. However, Blake allowed herself to relax against the hand above. If it were anyone else—even Weiss or Ruby—she would have stopped the action immediately, but because Yang was the one doing this, Blake let the incursion slide just this once.

"Morning, Blake," she heard a respectfully quiet version of her partner's voice say. The scratching did not cease.

"All right, she's up. Now, let's get moving. We don't have any time to waste." Through half-lidded eyes, Blake saw Weiss with her arms crossed in a stance more of indignation than her previous positions of metered patience. Standing beside her was Ruby, making it abundantly clear that she was growing impatient, judging by the rapidly shifting glances she gave to every other object in the room.

"Hold on, hold on," Yang said, still speaking softly. "Let's let her wake up first."

Weiss groaned. "We don't have time for that. They're going to usher us off any minute now!" Contrastingly, the heiress did not try to keep her voice down as she talked in the presence of a half-asleep Blake. However, the girl's impatience and underlying giddiness were hard to ignore despite her externally annoyed features.

"Then let them," Yang said simply and without a trace of malice in her tone. By this point, Blake would have awoken; however, the ministrations kept her from becoming fully functional. She could hear Weiss huff, likely out of defiance and partly due to Ruby's influence on her. "Just go on ahead," the blonde offered. "Go take Ruby to get our stuff and we'll meet you there in a minute."

Weiss looked as though she were about to say something, but all that resulted from this was her sighing and walking away with Ruby close behind.

As the sound of heels clicking against the floor faded into silence, Blake was once again able to focus on her partner's scratching. Unfortunately, the wanted ministrations eventually slowed to a halt, causing Blake to unwittingly moan in yearning dissatisfaction "She's right, though, kitten. We need to get going pretty soon." Blake did not seem to notice the name she had been given, instead having been surprised by the fact that Yang knew she was awake without having to look. "But take your time. It's not like Weiss is breathing down our necks anymore, so we don't have to rush out of here until you're good and ready."

With the knowledge that Yang was not going to continue scratching, Blake forced herself to awaken fully. What she found as she regained her senses was that she had been leaning against the front of Yang's shoulder. Furthermore, she realized that the blonde's arm had wrapped almost protectively around her waist. Realizing this, Blake sat up, abashed and blushing as Yang's arm returned to its owner. "Sorry," was all Blake's groggy voice could manage.

"Hey, don't worry about it. I'm still a little tired, too, after my own nap." As the blonde proved this statement with a wide yawn, she smiled warmly at her partner, not budging from her seat even with her previous warning of urgency. Suddenly, she adopted a weak toothy grin impaired by her own fatigue. "So, how'd you sleep?"

This brought Blake back into reality and, in effect, allowed her to rebuke something she had put off temporarily. "Don't call me kitten," was her tired reply.

Yang's impish expression eased back to her regular smile. "Sorry." A few long, comfortable moments lingered between the two. Blake realized the entire cabin was now empty except for them and they were but two partners sitting alone in the back of an airship. She looked to the blonde again and inadvertently saw the fading day beyond the window, showing the faintest signs of succumbing to the impending dusk. "So," Yang said, breaking the simple silence, "you ready to go?"

With a yawn, Blake stood. "Yeah. Sure. Ready when you are." She found her balance to be slightly off, but she attributed this to the fact that she had slept for six hours in a moving airship. Yang stood, too, and showed similar signs of a thrown-off balance; however, she was unable to find her bearings as quickly as Blake had and thus resorted to stumbling over to the Faunus, throwing an arm over her shoulder for support and leaning against the shorter girl. Blake returned in kind—after all, what were partners for? She smirked at this renewed contact, silently surprised at her ability to awaken so quickly and partially delighted by the fact that Yang needed a shoulder to lean on now. "Come on," she said, "let's get going. I don't think Weiss will be able to wait much longer."

Yang copied the expression, donning a smirk of her own. "Let the princess wait. It's not about her right now." Blake simply rolled her eyes and proceeded to walk out of the airship, supporting her partner as she went.

When Blake first left for Beacon Academy, she had boarded her airship in a dock-like area not dissimilar to the one the school utilized. This outdoor dock was what Blake expected to see when she stepped off of the airship, but what she found instead was an enclosed boarding bridge. From this tunnel, she could unfortunately speculate that the doors at the other end would lead into an airport.

She was immediately proven correct but was unable to take pride in the fact. There were two factors working against Blake at this time, the first being her enhanced hearing caused by the ears beneath her bow. What she had not expected was the innumerable mass of humanity swarming the area around the ramp's exit—the multitude of conversations, arguments, and screeching announcements over the various intercoms put a strain on her ability to hear. The second factor was her unadmitted anxiety. The sheer number of people in this horde sent shivers down her spine—the thought that any one of them might want to engage in conversation or remark upon her Faunus heritage, hidden though it was, was utterly paralyzing. Much worse, she knew that if she wanted to get out of the airport, she would need to walk through the crowd, unintentionally interacting with a great many of them as she brushed by.

Yang, who could apparently stand on her own now, tightened her grip around Blake when the girl tensed and quickly brought her into something of a side hug. To a human such as her, all that could be heard was simply an annoying drone of inarticulate speech. For the young Faunus, however, everything in the airport's entirety seemed to coalesce into a deafening cacophony which forced her to wince and shut her eyes. It hurt her mind, it hurt her ears, and visions of another life sprang forth into her memory, painting these humans as something they were not. Fortunately, she could feel Yang pulling her along.

As she looked up, Blake saw the inescapable crowd coming closer. Instinctively, she leaned into her partner's form and, in turn, Yang pulled her closer, making it so that the two took up as little space as possible while maneuvering through the masses. While Blake did blush at her actions, she preferred this position over the alternative and closed her eyes as she ignored the sounds around her, focusing only on the warm figure who held her protectively.

When she next opened her eyes, she found that the crowd was behind them and that the noise had died down a little. It was still loud, but it was now tolerable for the Faunus. Up ahead, Blake saw Weiss standing with her arms still crossed, glaring at both her and Yang. Ruby, meanwhile, looked as though she had wanted to say something or squeal at something she found adorable—that something being the same condition making the Faunus blush. Unfortunately for the young girl, Weiss spoke up first. "Took you long enough."

The remark and glare made Blake conscious of the fact that she was still clinging to Yang, resulting in their sudden, bashful separation. She noticed both her own and her partner's features were heavily flushed from embarrassment, and, for some odd reason, seeing Yang this way made the Faunus feel as though a smile were coming on. She suppressed this feeling, however, and turned her attention to the heiress, doing her best to hide this troublesome blush. "I'm sorry. We had difficulties waking up and reorienting ourselves, but at least we made it. Now what do we do?"

Still audibly annoyed, Weiss said, "Now we find our luggage. That is, if it hasn't already been stolen after waiting so long." She did not wait for any sort of response before marching off in the direction Blake could only assume was baggage claim. Ruby followed close behind, not missing a beat.

The young Faunus then felt an elbow nudge her from the side. She saw Yang smirking. "Don't worry about her. She's just excited is all—said something about a headache, but I think she's just happy to be away from Beacon."

"Yeah," Blake sighed. She agreed with Yang's assumption on the matter, but Weiss' negativity was not at fault for this current look of forlornness. Visions of their trek through the crowd still filled her mind. She saw throngs of humans descending upon her with intent to harm—she saw how everyone in the crowd gave her judgmental looks, silently reprimanding her for being born a certain way. She knew none of it was real, none of it was rational, but she tended to believe, especially after her golden savior rescued her from those who sought to harm. Of course, Blake could fight for herself and had done so for the majority of her life, but backup was a welcome change of pace after going for so long without.

Suddenly, Yang spoke up, more cheery and excitable than before. "C'mon! The faster we get our stuff, the faster we can get home!" She then took Blake's hand, effectively pulling the Faunus from her thoughts, and dragged her along towards baggage claim. Blake guessed it was in poor form to run in an airport, which was why she believed Yang's gait was as fast as one could walk without the motion being considered a jog. Regardless, she kept up with her partner and held the blonde's hand as though it were the most natural thing in the world.

As Yang led, Blake donned a wry smirk and asked, "Are you sure _we_ are going home or is it just you and Ruby?" The emphasis on the plurality in the statement only proved to thicken the mocking, albeit lighthearted sarcasm.

The blonde looked back and winked. "Yep! We. They say home is where the heart is, right?"

Whether or not she had intended this to mean anything more than a friendly jab remained to be seen. However, for the time being, Blake took the sentiment as having more-than-friendly implications and blushed accordingly. She had doubts Yang would ever say such a thing to her; the amount of times she had seen the blonde staring at and flirting with boys at the academy gave the Faunus credible reason to believe Yang would never flirt with her seriously. But Blake could dream, and, as such, held the comment close.

The rest of the walk went on in silence. At least, there was silence between the two of them; the airport, on the other hand, was still as boisterous and lively as ever. This must have been the reason why Yang was so unaffected by the crowds and noises—it must have felt natural to her. When they arrived at the baggage claim, Blake found the only people still waiting there were Weiss and Ruby, everyone else having perceivably found what they needed and left. Beside them was what looked to be an empty cart intended for carrying luggage. Ruby waved them over and the four reconvened.

"Still not out?" Yang asked, looking towards the carousel.

"Nope," Ruby replied. "Everybody else's stuff came out faster. Maybe those butlers put our stuff on the wrong airship."

"Absolutely not," Weiss stated firmly. "First of all, they are _not_ butlers. They are porters. Second, a porter hired by the Schnee family would never make a mistake like loading our luggage on a different flight." As if on cue, six pure-white suitcases came out from behind a black curtain and onto the conveyor belt. "See? What did I say?" Following Weiss' suitcases came the rest of her team's.

When Blake went to pick up her luggage, she was surprised to find that the latch had been fixed. She had been prepared for everything to fall out again but was relieved when nothing did. As she turned back to look at the others, she found that all six of Weiss' cases were piled neatly on the cart with one maroon case sitting at the top. The heiress did not seem annoyed by this extra suitcase but instead by the rocking motions Ruby made as she hugged what Blake assumed to be Crescent Rose. "Now what?" asked Weiss, visibly annoyed.

Yang moved to stand beside her partner, having no trouble carrying her own suitcase in one hand. "Now we hail a cab." Blake watched the blonde smirk at Weiss' subtle disgust. "It'll be fine, princess. It's just a taxi." While the heiress did not relent her look of disgust, she did roll her eyes in a manner that did not come across as expressly demeaning.

Before Blake could offer assistance in the hailing effort, she found that Yang had disappeared suddenly and entirely. Where she had gone or what she was doing was woefully indeterminate, but it was more than reasonable to believe she was acting impulsively and had left her team behind to find the aforementioned taxi. In the blonde's haste, Blake looked to Weiss, who simply shrugged before marching on as Ruby pushed the cart behind her. With her teammates in tow, Blake followed the directions given by the signs above, hoping to find an exit and, consequently, Yang.

Eventually, the group of three would arrive at a rather large foyer, the terminal as it would later be recognized. Light from outside streamed in through the many windows making up the walls of this area and reflected off of the shined granite flooring. However, the view would have been exquisite, energizing even, had the light not been shining on a sight that made Blake shudder. Yet another crowd stood in the way of the Faunus and her goal; unfortunately, the primary difference between this one and the last was the distinct lack of Yang to guide her through it, making this experience secretly horrifying to the supposedly unshakeable girl. Blake would have to go through this crowd by herself and face her fears without any help. It was easier said than done.

She stepped forward hesitantly; however, she only took one step before she froze again. Internally, she was berating herself. She was a competent warrior—she had no fears on the battlefield! She should not have been freezing up at something so benign as an impatient, judgmental, solid mass of humanity. Fortunately, movement in her peripheral caught her attention. She saw Ruby pushing the cart of luggage through the crowd, effectively making a path as Weiss followed along, entrusted with the task of carrying the young girl's weapon. Blake took this opportunity and fell in behind them.

The berth created by the cart was more than enough for Blake to breathe easy—rather, easier. As they blazed a trail through the wilderness of humanity, she could see in the distance what looked to be a door bathed in the light from outside. With eyes trained that the door and on nothing else, the journey through the crowd was made a much simpler process.

It felt as though no time at all had passed in Blake's mind between the moment she chose to follow the cart and the moment she was outside. In contrast to the morning's humidity and incessant heat, the air was now cool and comfortable and the sky above was a pale blue, the first signs of the day's closure. It seemed as though the sun were willingly submitting to the whims of the oncoming night and this point was only emphasized by the faraway clouds, now colored orange. A light breeze drifted by and cooled the young Faunus, causing her raven hair to sway in the wind as it brought the distinct saline scent of a nearby ocean. This new level of ambient conversation was not only tolerable to Blake's ears now, it was relaxing; it created a form of white noise that could tone out whatever worries she might have had before. She was in Vale with her friends, and she could not have been happier.

A shrill whistle was heard off to the side. The group turned to find Yang waving at them a short distance away, standing by a large, black taxi van. She did not have her suitcase in her hands, so Blake assumed the van would be their mode of transportation this evening. If it was not evident enough as to what her intent was, the blonde called out to the others. "Hey, guys! I found our ride!"

Weiss groaned in perceptible annoyance at the outburst. Blake merely smiled and followed as Ruby pushed the cart towards her sister.

Yang jogged up and relieved Ruby from her responsibility. "You and Weiss take a seat," she said. "Me and Blake will load up the van. We got a bit of talking to do before we head off, so just get ready. All right?" Blake did not object to her being volunteered. After all, she was the only one left carrying anything that was not meant to be kept within arm's reach at all times.

Without question, Ruby nodded and headed over to Weiss. She then proceeded to take the heiress by the wrist and pull her towards the van with no small amount of opposition from the girl in white. The sound of the van's door opening and closing signified that the two had found their seats, leaving Blake and Yang alone for the time being. However, the young Faunus had been so caught up in thinking that this most recent scene might have been cute had the wrist Ruby taken not been attached to Crescent Rose that this present solitude had gone unnoticed.

The blonde pushed the cart over to the sidewalk adjacent to the van, opened the back doors, and began piling the luggage inside. Blake had to wonder why Yang volunteered her; she seemed as though she could handle the entire process herself and the promised conversation was now nowhere to be found. Her question never was answered even when Yang asked her for her bag. The Faunus handed the brown case off, it was placed in the back with all the others, the doors were shut, and Yang returned the cart. Meanwhile, Blake was left standing there, ruminating on her own question and silence.

She never got to finish her thoughts as she found an arm wrapped around her shoulder. As Yang ushered her along, she blushed. "C'mon," the blonde said, "we've got a long ride ahead of us." Blake sighed; she had not heard this information before, though it was to be expected considering the capital's size. Yang chuckled at this dismayed expression. "Don't worry, it's not six hours long; it's tolerable. We'll be home before you know it." Perhaps it was due to the confidence behind this assurance or perhaps Blake was simply glad the arm over her shoulder had remained, but her blush slowly dissipated while they moved to take their seats.

As they neared the van, Yang jumped ahead and opened the door. "After you, mademoiselle," she offered, bowing slightly as she did. Blake simply shook her head and rolled her eyes as she stepped inside.

Due to the height, she remained in a sort of half-crouch while maneuvering about, trying not to disturb her partners yet wanting nothing more than to rest again. Weiss and Ruby had already taken the two seats furthest forward and the only ones separated from each other, not that this would be a problem, however. The heiress had her arms crossed in a look of frustration as she watched Ruby caress her weapon almost obsessively. Smirking at this, Blake moved to the first row of seats behind the two. As it was a bench, she chose to sit as far to the right as she could and leaned against the window, finding reprieve once again.

Moments later, she heard the tell-tale sound of the van's door closing and a mane of golden hair could be seen stalking its way through the seats. Yang made her way back to the bench and chose not to position herself against the opposite window but instead next to her partner. She shot the girl in black a quick smile before securing her seatbelt.

In this moment, the young Faunus was content with her position. She had made it through a crowded airport, she had arrived in the city of her summer, and Yang was sitting beside her, adding to this unadmitted delight. Unfortunately, her moment of peace would come to a crashing halt by the sisters' hands. As the driver turned and asked where the group was heading, Yang and Ruby simultaneously and incoherently shouted what must have been an address. Blake winced and had not been able to hear what the sisters said, but the driver supposedly had and drove forward to his given destination. Instead of dwelling on this volume, Blake returned to gazing out the window at the people waiting on the sidewalk, finding peace once again through this veil of tinted glass.

"Sorry," she heard Yang say from beside her. When she looked over, Blake found her partner with a rare sheepish expression. "Sorry about that. Probably could've toned it down a bit with the yelling, huh?"

The Faunus smiled and was about to say something appeasing until Weiss spoke up. "You should be sorry! I'm surprised I can still hear after that."

"Yeah, she's kinda right, Yang." Ruby rubbed one of her ears. "I think we probably went a little overboard with that."

Although the blonde's expression did not change, an almost imperceptible dip in her heat told Blake she really did feel bad about the noise. As such, she leaned over and nudged Yang with her shoulder. "Don't worry about it. It's all right." She spoke softly enough so Yang would be the only one to hear yet loudly enough to speak over the van's forward motion. "You were just excited is all. That's nothing to be ashamed about."

Smiling warmly, Yang returned the shoulder nudge. "Thanks," she said. She then made a slight motion as though she were about to move closer for some reason but halted herself very early on in the process. With the faintest of blushes dusting her cheeks, she proceeded to correct her posture and looked forward, hoping to act as though nothing had happened.

Fortunately, Blake did not miss that slight movement towards her—in fact, she had seen it in such vivid detail but could not believe it had happened. It looked to be an almost insignificant twitch, something entirely impossible, yet the action still caused her to question its original intent. The Faunus attempted to draw parallels between this, being volunteered to wait with Yang, and waking up to find her ears being scratched and immediately came to a conclusion. Without a second thought, she believed Yang was showing affection to her with romantic intent. But, then again, she knew this to be untrue as it was only an assumption created by her yearning mind—it was simply a rationalization of what could never be. She barely contained a crestfallen sigh and chose to forget about the motion, leaning against the window and taking in the sights instead.

During her interaction with Yang, the van had found its way onto a long stretch of highway which it now coasted upon, finding itself caught amid a crowd of cars and between two parts of this major city. Blake was faced with the choice of either looking directly ahead to the road and its repetitive, uninteresting sights or out at the suburbs and various commercial areas beyond the glass beside her. Unfortunately, the window on the other side was entirely out of the question, even if it did show the metropolitan area in all its high-rise glory—she could not bring herself to look in the general direction of her partner with such false thoughts running through her mind. Because of this, she settled to watch her own window and the horizon instead.

The hazy blue that had once been a vibrant cyan now tinted on its fringes with a warm and energetic orange. Already, she could see the distant light show of reds and whites as innumerable cars drove down the myriad side roads and streets, either preparing for the impending darkness or heading into the city proper to partake of this summer night's life. When she pressed the back of her hand against the glass, she found it cooler than expected, a sure sign that night was coming soon. Distracting herself from her thoughts of purely fictional romance, Blake watched the horizon and continued to press the side of her hand against the window, waiting for a further shift in color and temperature to prove her correct in at least one regard.

It took about an hour for any change to occur in their travels, being that the road had been long and the city it encompassed was indeed far larger than the young Faunus had initially understood. They stayed on the same highway throughout this duration and were only now turning off on an exit ramp. Although their forward progress had been distinctly noticeable with the changing settings and districts, Blake was nonetheless surprised that after an hour of driving, they had still not left the influence of the capital. Every building looked about the same as those she saw and hour ago, albeit strangely different, too, due to perhaps age or engineered themes. Even after all of those nights sitting on the cliff and staring at this city, only now could Blake truly appreciate the scope of it.

As the van drove down the exit, Blake was given a closer look at what the city had to offer. The exit led to a road which was marked as a highway; however, it was not a highway in the traditional sense, being that it had commercial buildings and promenades lining either side of it and pedestrians who walked to and fro, moving along the wide promenades with careless ease. There were names of restaurants and stores that Blake had only heard of from prior praise and as well business to these shops which only added to her glancing interest. There were neighbors in adjacent townhouses conversing in a most genial manner and an air of contentment that seemed impossible outside of a storybook. Despite this impossibility, however, this was everything Blake had expected of the city and she had not even reached the heart of it yet.

She stared at the new scenery for what was to be an unintentional fifteen minutes until the highway began to shrink from a three-lane boulevard to a one-lane road. In this transition, the stores, the restaurants, and the townhouses gave way to an expanse of verdant plains. Gone were the obstructions impeding one's sight of the horizon and in their place came the blossoming elegance of the distant sunset. The blue which fringed the horizon gave way to a yellow warmth as the sun began to touch the distant hills bordering Vale's city limits. When the star dipped into eventual darkness, however, it intensified, casting a bright shadow across the land which came from a cloud, now grey, passing in front of it. Blake found it odd that she could look into the sun without having to avert her gaze, yet she chose not to voice her observations. Slowly but surely, the glass of the window cooled as the day's radiance diminished with its descent. The warm sun in the distance, as far away and detached though it may have been, allowed Blake to relax.

"Whoa," she heard someone whisper. The Faunus then felt something brush up against her cheek and when she looked to the cause, she found the blonde leaning over, placing her chin on her partner's shoulder and staring unabashedly out her window. As the warmth of Yang's chin radiated throughout the girl in black, Blake realized that what had brushed against her was a lock of golden hair. She could not blush at the contact because she was not embarrassed by it—Yang was not flirting or insinuating anything, merely showing awe at the sight of the sunset. As such, the young Faunus simply smiled and watched the spectacle with her partner. She knew Yang would not reciprocate the underlying sentiments hidden in this smile, but Blake could accept this as an affectionate occurrence while it lasted. With the touch of the cold glass replaced with Yang's warmth, Blake dreamily stared off into the distance, losing track of time to the feeling of correctness this moment gave her.

Before she knew it, the van turned one final corner and the view of the sunset was gone, hidden behind a wall of luggage. This caused Yang to return to her seat with an odd smirk on her lips. Blake had intended to figure out the cause of this expression until she looked to the road ahead.

A rather large, one-story ranch house stood in the center of a grassy field, marred only in its bucolic serenity by the earthen driveway leading up to it from the road prior. Blake was surprised at the sight set before her. In a word, she had expected the sisters' home to be humble, seeing as how the two were consistently resourceful with what they had and valued everything they owned to an affectionate degree. However, the house that stood before her was large and secluded, something she did not expect from her extroverted partner.

The van slowed to a halt at the foot of the house's porch before the driver turned to state the trip's fare. Before anyone else could do so, Weiss paid the man, handing him an immaculate card from seemingly nowhere and regaining it just as quickly. It was then that she brusquely opened the door and let in the fresh air at the expense of her presence—an admittedly worthy fee after travelling for so long. One by one, the group exited the vehicle to stand before the house on the dirt road. Day had become dusk, leaving what was left of the light to linger on the horizon and it was against the darkness that this home was silhouetted.

"Home sweet home," Yang stated airily.

However, she was nudged. "Not yet, Yang. Almost, but not yet," Ruby chided with a small, excited smile. Her sister merely rolled her eyes and moved to the back of the van and opened its doors. To make the trip easier on themselves by avoiding too many trips back and forth, each member of the team carried more than one case. Ruby carried both of her cases, Weiss appeared strained by only two of her own, Blake held both hers and one of the heiress', and Yang carried two of Weiss' along with her own bloated suitcase.

Ruby led her team up the porch's wooden steps with an established ease, bounding up the small flight as though she had done it a thousand times before. She and her sister were the first to reach the wide red door, leaving her other teammates to hesitantly climb to this yet strange place. Blake, with her calm and cool demeanor, and Weiss, who did everything confidently and with practiced grace, were both reduced to awkward teenagers who acted as though they had never encountered a situation like this before. Of course, it is to say that Blake truly had not experienced a situation such as this; she did not know if the same could be said for Weiss, but she assumed so since they were both historically lacking in friends. Admittedly, this was Blake's first time being a guest in someone's home in a very, very long time.

When Yang and Ruby reached the door, they proceeded to set their cases on the wooden boards beneath them before separating into two separate actions. Ruby ran back to the van and grabbed Weiss' remaining suitcase while Yang fished for something in one of the many pockets of her jacket.

Blake and Weiss arrived at the same time to stand beside the blonde uncertainly, shifting the weight of their suitcases from one side to the other as they silently waited for something to happen. Then, at the same time as well, Ruby bolted back to the porch and sidestepped her partner, retrieving Crescent Rose as Yang pulled a key from her pocket. She inserted it into the lock, turned, but did not open the door just yet. Instead, she looked to Ruby who permitted, "Do it."

With her sister's blessing, Yang flung the door wide open, yelling "Home! Sweet home!" Neither Ruby nor Blake could suppress a laugh at this, the former being louder than the latter, and yet no one here seemed to care. Despite the cliché, there was a certain sincerity to the way Yang had shouted it.

The girl in red followed her sister in and immediately placed the two suitcases she carried on the ground beside the door. "Well?" She looked to the two stragglers. "Come on in! You're gonna love it here, I promise!"

Nervously, the two stepped inside, Blake allowing Weiss to go first since the invitation seemed to have been directed at her. However, the trepidation afflicting both of the quieter girls seemed to disappear entirely as Blake stepped across the threshold. She stood in what could be considered a living room which exuded an unfounded, unfamiliar warmth. She searched for the source but only found an unlit fireplace on an opposite wall and a thermostat, apparently turned off, and reasoned that this sensation could have been her partner not being in control of her aura. But, then again, Blake could usually differentiate Yang's heat from other sources. This was not the blonde's doing; this was different. This warmth was familiar, somehow, and yet completely foreign and indescribable to the young Faunus. This house exuded an odd smell—not one that was necessarily displeasing but one that was peculiar and foreign. She could not put her finger on it, the only word coming to mind being "dusty," but this was likely due to the fact that the house had been unoccupied for upwards of nine months. Even then, she felt inexplicably safe here—"safe"; that was the word to describe the sensation.

As Weiss moved further in to survey her surroundings, Ruby walked back out to retrieve her other bag. Yang, meanwhile, approached the two newcomers. "Okay," she started, clapping her hands together. "First things first. We'll get you set up in your rooms and show you around and then last, but _certainly_ not least, we'll figure out what to eat. Does that sound all right?" This received a nod from Blake and an uncertain "Sure" from Weiss.

Yang picked up four of the heiress' bags by herself and began to move through the house, giving the girls behind her cue to follow. Ruby eventually caught up with them, carrying her own bags and smiling widely at her partner. To either side, doorless portals could be seen leading to different rooms of which Blake could not assume the significance of. While the house had been surprisingly clean, there were yet telling signs proving the two energetic sisters had at one point lived here. There were barely noticeable stains on the carpet beneath which looked to have come from mud being carried in on one of their boots and there were small, insignificant dents in the drywall beside them, markers of past stumbles and mistakes. Blake made it a point to not comment on either quirk and saw that neither sister bothered to take off their shoes when entering—comparatively odd for how she was raised. Nonetheless, she examined the rest of the house, finding it strangely calming despite its newness and size. The group turned down a corridor which led them away from the living room and were immediately faced with a hall lined with doors.

Yang slowed to a halt before the first door and promptly whirled around to face the travel-weary duo behind her. "All right," she started with a broad smile. "This room right here," she patted the door's frame for emphasis, "is Ruby's room. As you can guess, Ruby will be sleeping here. But she won't be the only one. This is where we might have a _bit_ of a problem." She looked at both Blake and Weiss, watching them for any signs of distress. Blake was certain that whatever problem arose, it could be handled fairly easily and she was sure Weiss felt the same way. Taking the hint that her audience was listening, Yang continued. "Our problem is with sleeping arrangements. There are four of us here but only three bedrooms. I have my own room and there's a guest room down the hall. On top of that, Ruby's bed is a bunk bed."

With an exasperated sigh, Weiss looked to Ruby. "Of course. You _would_ have a bunk bed." Ruby laughed nervously.

"Anyways," said Yang, diverting the attention back to herself. She looked between the contesting two. "Both of you can share the guest room if you want, but it only has one bed. Or, if you're brave enough, one of you can bunk with Ruby and the other gets the guest bed."

With the ultimatum out in the open, Blake and Weiss were left to make a decision. This came in the form of conversation through body language, as not to accidentally offend their hosts with one or both of them rejecting the invitation openly.

Blake cocked her head to the side, letting Weiss have the first say.

Weiss lifted a brow to return the offer.

Blake shrugged.

Weiss gave a questioning gaze. She darted her eyes between the Faunus and Ruby. After a moment to separate one item in her list, she darted her eyes between Blake and the floor nearest her own feet.

Again, Blake shrugged.

Weiss concluded with a sigh. It was certainly not a sigh of defeat from what Blake could tell, but whatever it meant was yet a mystery to the young Faunus. "Fine," the heiress acquiesced. "I'll be the one who stays with Ruby."

Loudly and triumphantly, her partner cheered at this. Ruby scurried past her teammates to get to the door, eagerly opening it and inviting the heiress in. With a reluctant look to those who would sleep alone, Weiss followed after the young girl, placing her cases in the center of the room and taking the four held by the blonde much the same. "This is going to be great, Weiss!" Ruby all but laughed. "It'll be just like at Beacon! You can have the bottom bunk—I sleep up top, anyways—and the closet's over there—I'll clear some stuff out for you. Oh! And if you—"

Yang closed the door on the two, effectively muting the conversation. Blake was surprised to have not heard a single groan come from the heiress as Ruby chattered away in her rambling, excited way and, similarly, the blonde looked surprised, too. "Huh. We might just see Weiss smile for once."

"Why's that?"

Yang shrugged. "Eh, no reason. I've just got a feeling about it. Anyways," she drawled, "this'll be your room." She opened the second door and entered, turning on the lights as she went. "There's a closet on the near wall, a dresser in the corner, and nightstands on either side of the bed where you can keep your books and stuff." Her grin showed she was pleased with the last item on the list. "Bathroom's across from Weiss and Ruby's and my room's across the way."

Blake stepped in and took a look around. The room was spacious, more so than what she had seen of Ruby's room, and against the back wall stood a single bed with simple white sheets and pillows. She felt it would have probably fit Weiss better with her family's expected color, but Blake was not going to complain. It was immaculate—seemingly untouched by previous ownership. She turned to Yang and gave a grateful smile.

"We'll all get settled in then we'll see what we wanna do for dinner." She paused for a moment, looking as though she were about to say something else but shook her head and decided against it., "I'll be in my room if you need me—I mean, if you need anything." At this, she left with a grin, closing the guest room door and leaving Blake without an opportunity to reply.

Unfortunately, with the blonde now gone, Blake's world became noticeably darker and colder than it had any right being. Silence and solitude had once been desired by the girl in black, but this was before she had grown accustomed to her eclectic team. Now, without the company of her companion and the inherent warmth she provided, Blake found herself in a sickeningly quiet and alien environment. The room was too clean, too devoid of any personality, and it felt wrong, sterile even. She needed to do something to break the silence of her solitude—make a noise perhaps or occupy her time in some wasteful way. As such, she took her suitcase, laid it on the bed, and unlatched it in one fluid motion. On top of her belongings rested Gambol Shroud, her weapon of only a few years, folded and secured. Blake sat on the edge of her bed and held the weapon up, looking it over for any flaws. She knew there would be none—there never were—but she needed something to occupy her time and to keep her hopeful thoughts away from her partner.

She went through the motions of ensuring the gun was unloaded, the blades were still sharp, and the ribbon lacked any tears. She tested the slide, unfolded and refolded the inner blade, and found that everything was in optimal condition and thus placed her weapon atop the nightstand with loaded magazines sitting close by.

With her weapon taken care of, Blake shifted her focus to unpacking the rest of her belongings into the room she would call her own. During the many trips to and from the dresser and closet, she found just enough motivation to distract herself from her odd spike in loneliness to instead find reasons for Yang's earlier actions. This morning's events and the seemingly inadvertent flirting which occurred at the time could immediately be written off on the point that this was simply Yang's usual, chipper, if not intrusive self. The events after the morning, however, were a much different story.

The recurring theme in the blonde's actions had been to get both herself and her partner away from everyone else, giving them time to speak alone but never actually speaking. Blake knew this but did not know why—she had an idea which she believed to be wrong, but she did not know for sure. To make herself sure, however, she began dissecting the instance involving Yang pulling her to the unoccupied airship in an eager rush before succumbing to a strange melancholy. She knew the blonde was energetic and generally over-enthusiastic, but it was uncharacteristic for her to go the extra mile for nothingness and silence. Moreover, the fact that Yang had only pulled Blake along, not Ruby or Weiss, was telling of what she thought about their friendship.

However, it seemed the blonde's goal had not only been to give the other partnership time alone but as well to speak to Blake of her gratitude. The stark contrast between the energy displayed in the lead-up to their isolation and the sudden wistfulness which had silenced her struck Blake as odd—the usually loquacious girl had not uttered a word until she confided why the summer's invitation had been given, and even then, she had not been her usual self. In that moment, she was proven unguarded and utterly sincere. This, when added to the thankful hug she gave, made Blake reason that Yang accepted her as a dear friend or something of the valued sort.

She then began to reminisce upon the events at the end of the airship ride. Similar to how she had acted before they took off, the blonde's energy was noticeably tame, making her patient and calm. She had kept her voice down with the knowledge that her partner was only barely awake and stayed this way even when Weiss spoke at her regular volume. Blake understood that she and Yang held a mutual respect for one another as both fighters and people, but this sensitivity showed a certain value that Yang had attached to her.

On top of this were the circumstances as to how Blake awoke from her nap. When she first became aware of her surroundings, she found that not only had she been unconsciously leaning against Yang for the hours prior but as well that the girl had been gently scratching her bow-covered ears. Before, Yang would only make the occasional cat joke or pun, always causing her partner to frown in the process, but these soothing motions set themselves apart from the jokes in that they were an act of honest care, contrasting the mischief of the morning. Blake knew the blonde would never dare to show this unguarded, un-Yang-like attitude towards Weiss or even Ruby, judging by her hesitation to say anything remotely negative about her sister, but she seemed to trust her partner enough to break character.

Fortunately, the process of unpacking could finally come to an end on the next trip back to her suitcase. Her clothes had been put away, her books had been stored in the nightstand, and Gambol Shroud was placed within arm's reach on top of the nightstand. With nothing else to do, Blake closed her suitcase and slid it beneath what was to be her bed for the next three months. With one situation left to ponder over, Blake sat down on the bed and eased herself up against the pillows and headboard, reacquainting herself with relaxation and sighing at this rest.

The final instance remembered was that of the ride to the sisters' house—the reasons why this action was of significant were twofold. Firstly, Yang had chosen to seat herself beside Blake when given the opportunity to sit on the opposite side of the bench. Of course, this played into the "valued friend" concept, but it did not explain the following action. The second reason was when Yang had rested her chin on Blake's shoulder to watch the sunset, it felt as though nothing else mattered in the world to the young Faunus.

The contact—as surprising as it initially was—allowed her to be distracted from the confusion over Yang's earlier actions. It displayed a certain tranquility about the blonde which had seldom been seen before and it furthermore showed that both girls were unopposed to physical contact which could give off a more-than-friendly implication. In fact, this confident move gave Blake reason to believe Yang valued her as something more than a friend. The young Faunus tried to get as far away from this notion as she possibly could, straining to rationalize the affections as those of a mere best friend, but try as she might, Blake could not avoid this hopeful idea.

Frustrated, she sighed, shifting her position to lay down and stare at the ceiling. Blake gazed into the light above, wondering what she would do with this new understanding. Perhaps she could wait around and hope Yang would reveal her intentions first—the young Faunus was patient; waiting would not be a problem—or perhaps she could be proactive, herself. Admittedly, she was scared of this latter idea and the lack of admissible evidence towards her spurring hopes, but it seemed to be the most reasonable course of action, being that her own intentions had seldom been clear to anyone around her. It was unlikely Yang knew of her crush and it was equally as unlikely she would ever find out. Blake was a secretive sort, and, as such, the only way for the blonde to realize her partner's unadmitted affections was for these dreams to be admitted and for Blake to be proactive. Again, the Faunus sighed at her tentative decision.

There was a knock at the door. "Blake? Hey, Blake, are you all set up in there?" Yang's interruption was a pleasant, if not flustering surprise.

"Yeah, I'll be out in a moment." Blake lifted herself from her bed and took a second to ensure there was nothing left to put away. Satisfied with what she saw, she moved to open the door, unwittingly fixing her hair as she went.

She had expected to find her partner waiting an appropriate distance away from the door as anyone normally should. However, what she found instead was Yang leaning against the door's frame by her elbow and dressed in the pajamas she had brought with her to Beacon. It seemed as though she was trying to strike some sort of flirtatious pose and it would have worked had she been able to suppress her self-amused snickers. Nevertheless, Blake was startled. Because of her practiced stoicism, she was fortunately unable to gasp or yelp in a way her teammates would, but, unfortunately, her instinct was to take a step back, ball her hands into fists, and, unintentionally, widen her eyes, assessing the situation as best she could. This response broke the dam of Yang's laughter.

Through her loud, unrestrained guffaws, Yang was only just able to gasp, "You should have seen the look on your face!" She was then interrupted by another fit of laughter. It took a small while, but once she reached a certain level of composure, she gasped again. "You-you totally _are_ a cat! Your bow even flattened! You were so scared!"

Rather than paying the joke any mind, Blake blushed at her ears' reaction. Surprisingly, the expression did not form from Yang's observation, being that Blake had become comfortable with her team knowing about her Faunus heritage; instead, the blush arose due to her ears being a source of distracting humor. Rather than getting upset over a certainly distasteful joke, Blake found herself thankfully preoccupied with the moment at hand, bringing her thoughts away from her newest decision and towards the warmth of her partner's voice.

She waited until the blonde's laughter dissipated before saying anything but was not given the chance to as Yang apologized, her giggles coming to an end. "I'm sorry, Blake. That was rude of me. It was just…It was so unexpected."

Blake felt the need to quip, "You can say that again," but chose instead to sigh, clearing her mind of the incident. "It's all right. Just warn me next time, if you could. I wasn't expecting you to be that close, but…" As her sentence trailed off, she found herself enthralled by the beginnings of a smile which pulled at Yang's lips. "Anyways," she began again, wanting to refocus the conversation, "did you come up with a plan for dinner?"

"Yep!" Yang chirped. "Ruby and Weiss are already asleep." Somehow, Blake was not surprised by this—it had been a long day indeed and the two had been incredibly patient compared to herself and Yang. "So, I was thinking that we'd, like, order pizza and watch a movie or something. I mean, if you want to."

"Sure," Blake replied. "Pizza will work." Truthfully, the prospect of any food not made in Beacon's cafeteria sounded absolutely wonderful. She was sure Weiss would have objected, but because she was asleep, she could not make her opposition known.

Yang beamed. "All right. I'm gonna go order while you change into something a little more comfortable. Then meet me in the living room—we'll get the movie set up while we wait. Sound good?"

Blake nodded, prompting the blonde to turn down the hall and her partner to close the door, finding herself smiling all the while. Even if the girl was excitable by simple things like ordering a pizza or watching a movie, she was still able to make Blake smile—not simply smirk, but actually smile. Perhaps this was what led the young Faunus to accept without question, but, more than likely, she had accepted because it was Yang who asked.

With a sigh, she let the matter go and proceeded to change into her pajamas.

She tried to recall the last time she had watched a movie and found there was only one instance in the past year. On a particularly cool spring night, the school faculty decided for one reason or another that a movie night would be a good way to boost morale and bring the teams together. Blake had been goaded into attending by Ruby on the grounds that it was a mandatory team-building exercise—something both had been mistaken about—and, surprisingly, found that she enjoyed the experience, if only for the company she held. Of course, she still preferred the written word, but the night had been worth it in the end. Technically, this was to be her second movie night with Yang, and both were excited.

In a matter of minutes, she had changed into her yukata and now walked down the hall towards the living room. As she passed her leader's room, however, she was met with silence, notifying her that Yang's observations had been astute. With this in mind, she crept by the door, taking care to not wake either of the occupants.

As she entered the living room, she found Yang hanging up a cordless telephone, presumably already having ordered the food. "Thirty minutes out," she called. "TV room's this way." Instead of pointing and indicating a direction, she walked out of Blake's sight and into a different room. Blindly, the Faunus followed, having no idea where the blonde was leading her but trusting her regardless.

Immediately, she was faced with a jarring monolith of a television and a quartet of leather seats before it. Judging by their curvature being focused on the gargantuan screen and the numerous cup holders situated in the sectional's armrests, Blake assumed this was the home theatre Yang had often boasted about. Meanwhile, the blonde in reference had her attention trained on a shelf against the far wall, sifting through the rows of films as Blake would books in a library. However, even with her attention diverted, she was somehow able to detect her partner's presence. "Take a seat wherever you like. I'll be there in just a sec!"

Blake abided and found herself faced with the decision of which out of the four seats she wished to take—rather, three seats since the center two formed a sort of love seat. Without a second thought, she quickly decided on these center two, seeing this as an opportunity for observation on her partner's potentially reciprocal behavior. And by the time Yang chose a movie, Blake had realized there was a blanket lying next to her, seeing this as yet another opportunity. Smirking, she laid the cover across her lap and legs before placing its other half on the seat beside her, waiting patiently for Yang to choose her seat.

As had been predicted, the blonde fell backwards into the spot beside Blake, grinning all the while. She held a remote in her hand and deftly changed the inputs on the television before navigating the movie's menu. Purportedly, the film was simply a "dumb comedy" and it would be a good way to unwind after a day of travel—or so Yang said. She then took the offered blanket, draping over both of them and moving invisibly closer, before reaching down into the space between their respective sections, grasping for something, and eventually finding it. As she pulled her arm back up, the lower portion of her seat became a leg rest—the seats doubled as recliners. Blake felt for a mechanism on her side and pulled as well. She returned her partner's smile, eager for the night ahead.

The film began and Blake found herself settling into the new warmth supplied by her partner. Although Yang did not reach out to scratch her the young Faunus' ears or whisper unwanted names and compliments, her occasional attention was much appreciated and readily noted. There was an admitted drop-off in conversation as the plot got underway, but Blake could not find evidence to either prove or disprove her hopes—of course, this lack of conversation could perhaps equate to a lack of interest, but this was likely not the case since Yang had shared a blanket with and sat next to her partner. Blake wanted to assume the blonde was interested and thus reveled in every accidental touch of their shoulders, but she understood that until Yang did something overt, then these assumptions would be only dreams, albeit good dreams. So, it is to say that, at this point, Yang did not show any outward signs of reciprocation but did indeed seem comfortable with her partner's friendship.

From Blake's perspective, however, thoughts came rapidly and fell easily into irrationality by way of emotion. Where Yang showed nothing, Blake felt something, and as she watched her partner laugh at every joke and gag on screen, she felt happy for some reason. To think that Blake Belladonna, aloof and uninterested though she was, could be smitten by this energetic source was unthinkable. Unfortunately for her, she was indeed smitten and smitten hard. As Yang smiled, Blake smiled; as the blonde laughed, so did the Faunus; and as the girl in yellow brushed her shoulder against her partner's own, the girl in black fought the urge to lean against her. Yang was immersed in her movie and Blake was immersed in Yang, and though the sentiments were likely misguided, the young Faunus could dream.

Unfortunately, her thoughts were soon halted by the ringing of a doorbell. In an instant, Yang paused the movie and shot up from the couch, leaving Blake to subconsciously pull the blanket closer to herself and keep the fading warmth safe. She looked over the back of the couch to see her partner walking towards the adjacent room, leaving Blake's sight but not her hearing.

The front door opened and the air pressure within the house lowered slightly as it intermingled with the humidity beyond. It was then that Blake heard a distinctly male voice say, "Well, hello there." The tone in which he spoke caused her to worry.

"Hi! How's it going?"

"I've got an order for a…Ms. Schnee?" Suddenly, worries turned to laughter as Blake suppressed her expression. "Two cheeses and one—"

"Yup! That's me!"

"Might I say what a lovely name that is for such a lovely lady." It was odd, but a pang of jealousy welled within the young Faunus. Although Yang had not assented to any sort of relationship yet or even show signs of wanting one, Blake felt as though her partner were being taken away. And, surprisingly, the pang hurt. Blake clutched the blanket closer.

"And might I say what a lovely pizza that looks like." Fortunately, this was able to ease the Faunus' doubts, if somewhat. She could only imagine Yang's eyes trained on the box, not meeting this boy's gaze in his desperate search for conversation.

"But of course!" She could tell that he was forcing this bombast, trying so hard to get the attention of her partner. "Such a quality product is handcrafted only for the most quality of customers such as yourself." He paused then looked over to where Blake was, somehow noticing her despite the distance between them. "And your sister." He winked.

Blake had to ask herself if a person could really be this imperceptive. Not only had he failed to recognize the Schnee family name, he had assumed the black-haired, amber-eyed Faunus was a relative of Yang's. This latter suggestion did not seem too outrageous, however, being that Yang and Ruby were biological sisters, as different as they looked, and Blake was still wearing her bow, but the boy seemed dense regardless. On one hand, he was trying to flirt with a driven Yang and on the other he was trying to flirt with both girls at once. Truly, he lacked self-awareness.

But Blake could not laugh at this. No, she was rendered silent as she watched her partner shift so his view of the house was obstructed as her golden mane occasionally sparked. Yang's voice shifted to a less-than-diplomatic tone. "How much for the pizza?"

He progressed unfazed. "Well, for you—"

"How much?"

He stuttered, now fazed. "T-Twenty Lien."

Blake could only see Yang snatch the pizza from his arm and forcefully shove what she assumed was the amount due into his hand. He sounded as though he were about to say something but was unable to with the visibly infuriated blonde slamming the door in his face. However, Yang whirled around and turned a radiant smile on her partner. "Sit tight, Blake," she called, nothing in her voice indicating annoyance, "I'll bring you back some."

Sighing, the Faunus sat back down and clutched at the blanket. Why was it that she only felt annoyed when some stranger flirted with her but absolutely flustered whenever Yang did it? Furthermore, why did it hurt so much when the boy flirted with Yang but not when he flirted with Blake? She attributed it to her crush on the golden girl but questioned whether or not this was a simple crush anymore. The word held connotations that made Blake's affections seem unserious and unimportant in the grand scheme of things. What she felt was stronger, more important than some delivery boy's shot-in-the-dark attempt, and although she could not dub the sentiment any single word at the moment, she knew her infatuation had gone far beyond what a mere crush meant.

Fortunately, Yang would soon return with a paper plate in each hand and a wide, undeterred smile tugging at her lips. Before she sat back down, she handed Blake her plate and napkin, eliciting a "Thank you" from the raven-haired girl, after which the seat beside her was retaken. She did not bother putting the blanket back on or moving away from the shoulder she firmly pressed against, seemingly content with this closeness and cold, and instead resumed the film as she began to eat.

Blake's eyes had been trained on her the entire time, but when she finally looked at her food, she groaned. "Really?"

"What?" Yang followed the girl's pointed gaze. On the plate was one slice of cheese pizza, a safe bet for anyone with tastes yet unknown, while the other had anchovies. "Oh," she said sheepishly and genuinely so. "Sorry, I didn't mean it as a joke, I promise. I just thought that because you like fish so much, you'd like anchovies, as well."

The girl's apologetic grin easily calmed Blake's look of annoyance. "You're lucky you were right," was all the young Faunus said before taking a bite of her pizza. Yang looked positively thrilled at the acceptance and returned her gaze to the movie.

* * *

The rest of the film went on in relative peace. Yang had gone back a couple times for more pizza while Blake was content with the one plate she had been given. Overt romantic instances were almost nonexistent at this time; instead, the two focused on the film which gradually became funnier to the point where Yang was in tears and Blake was able to laugh openly and without feeling the need to suppress it. Unfortunately, one other action which Blake could not suppress was that of a yawn. The day had taken its toll on her despite her six-hour nap and only now, in this state of peace and stability, could she fully realize her fatigue.

Moving her eyes became a chore, limiting her ability to roll them at whatever jokes Yang made and forcing her to blatantly turn her head towards the blonde rather than glancing at her from her peripheral. In her tired stupor, common sense and stealth tactics had been forgone entirely, allowing Blake to stare longingly and freely at her partner. Fortunately, her practiced stoicism disguised this pining look as one of extreme tiredness, but she would admit there would be no harm done if Yang understood.

From time to time, the blonde looked over to the barely conscious girl and smiled warmly. Blake, still vaguely aware of her surroundings, would take these opportunities to gaze into the lilac eyes, admire the caring, happy expression, and simply bask in the warmth which radiated from Yang. However, they would both turn back, attempting to return their attention to the television and get away from the presented emotion. Incidentally, Blake found her gaze fixed on some sort of black box beneath the television and the clock thereon. The time was exactly 11:00 p.m.

Be it by her exhaustion-fueled delirium or her subconscious acting out its whims in her weakened state, Blake found herself wanting more of her partner's warmth. Her eyelids drooped piteously. She wanted to keep watching the movie—to keep laughing with Yang—but at the same time, she wanted nothing more than to sleep, realizing the warmth beside her was preferable over the blanket in her lap. After all of the travelling, waiting, and questioning of what was and what could be, Blake found herself unable to keep her eyes open any longer. She faintly felt herself losing balance, falling to her left, and landing upon the shoulder of that warm figure. She smiled, knowing that this was not a bad thing. As she drifted off to sleep, she could feel the warmth noticeably swell.

* * *

If you've made it this far into the story, I thank you dearly. I doubt I will make a chapter of this length for _Valence_ again because although I said in the author's note at the beginning of the chapter that I was against segmenting my chapters, I understand that 20,000-word chapters are a pain to read even in multiple sittings. However, this chapter that transitioned from Beacon Academy to the main setting of the rest of the story required a longer chapter. I can only hope that my personal enjoyment of this chapter is not based in delusions spawning from my looking at the same file for about three weeks. Maybe it is terrible and I am loony after all, but I thought it was good and was able to learn some things from the process of writing it.

One other thing before I my next update in a week: I created a Tumblr profile where updates on this story's progress can be found and where one might choose to leave a question/comment anonymously or otherwise. A link can be found near the top of my Fanfiction profile.

Once again, I'd like to thank you for reading this. My goal with _Valence_ is not fame or praise but to entertain. If I am able to entertain just one person, then I have succeeded. The response shown in chapter one blew that "just one person" idea out of the water. Thank you.

Stay safe and stay tuned.


	3. Chapter 3: Bumblebee

Welcome back. I would like to thank everyone who viewed, reviewed, followed, favorited, or any other resulting action of a click of the mouse. I would also like to thank those of you who read through the leviathan of a second chapter. I'm going to keep this author's note as brief as relatively possible, but first I would like to make two things apparent that I haven't already. These are things that I should have said earlier, but because of my aversion to potentially spoiling anything, I couldn't bring myself to do so. Thankfully, two reviews inquired about two separate subjects. What I mean to discuss are the expected length of _Valence _and the main relationships shown in the story. I go into a little more technical depth in a review I made to directly answer the questions if you want to find a little more supplementary information.

The first item on the list deals with how many chapters there will be and an estimate of when I want to be finished. As the skeletonized plot currently stands, I expect chapters to number between twenty and twenty-five, with the story's word count finishing somewhere between 200,000 and 300,000. The word count is an estimate, though the chapter numbers are almost concrete. I wish to have this story completed before RTX 2014 (By July 4th.). My reasons for this are twofold: 1. RWBY Volume 2 premiers at RTX and there is a distinct possibility that some part of my story will come into conflict with introduced canon. 2. I am attending the convention and do not wish to have my mind completely focused on writing for three whole days when I could be enjoying Austin. That, and if I am able to attend the RWBY panel this year (Last year, every panel for RWBY had a line that was absolutely huge by the time I had the chance to enter the queue.), I don't want to have a panic attack in the midst of a crowd of about 5,000 over a small nuance that I might feel the need to rewrite the story around.

The second item on the list pertains to which relationships are showcased; specifically, which relationships will receive the most screen time. The relationship between Blake and Yang will be the primary focus of this novel since the story is told from a third-person limited point of view based around Blake's perspective. It is not to say that the relationship between Ruby and Weiss will be downplayed into obscurity. They will receive their time in the limelight and are integral to the progression of the plot, but are secondary to Blake and Yang's relationship. Yet, I am having an amazingly fun time writing their blossoming relationship from a passive, dismissive, and somewhat subtle manner. The time spent away from Ruby and Weiss, I feel, makes the reader able to rationalize a number of possible occurrences between the two that furthers their relationship without my intervention.

If there is anything else anybody would like to know about the story like the two items I listed, feel free to send me a private message, ask in a review, or ask on my Tumblr. Though, if the questions asked in the review section either have answers that other readers would want to know or are asked by anonymous reviewers, they will be answered on my Tumblr. Otherwise, I will answer with a private message as soon as I can. This is so that I do not bog down the reviews with my own answers and in effect, increase the number of shown reviews for the story.

I believe that is all I need to say in this author's note. Ladies and gentlemen, chapter three of _Valence_.

* * *

Chapter 3: Bumblebee

As an aside to the reader, it is to be noted that although the point of view thus far has been focused on Blake Belladonna's thoughts and perspective, not all information pertaining to her psyche has been supplied. This is due in part to Blake's level of social prowess and aversion to conversational topics on the subject of her emotions and opinions on presented situations. It is not to say that she is socially inept by any means. What is intended to be said is that Blake, as confident as she was in her hypothetical ability to control a conversation, was but an introvert by all definitions of the word. To voice her opinion would be forced, to go out of her way to appease someone else would be a foreign concept, and to speak of her desires would be an act so blasphemous to her own doctrine of stoicism and composure that it often made her blush. Pride made her believe that she had been able to stray far away from her self-imposed isolationist personality. While it is true that she was more willing to join in on her team's activities, she was still not able to express her thoughts or emotions on the subject.

The point of this aside is not to describe how Blake Belladonna's personality truly was. Expressly, this aside is meant to show why the young Faunus could not accept her affections of Yang nor could she accept the fact that Yang held these affections as well. It is to be stated that Blake held a definite emotional attachment to Yang that was well within the bounds of being romantic. Concurrently, Yang held similar hidden sentiments—however, for the sake of perspective, the explicit details of her affection shall not be divulged at this juncture.

Blake believed that she had been investigating Yang the night prior, and while it was true that she observed and analyzed her partner, her own emotions got in the way of reaching a final verdict as to why Yang acted the way she did. It was not her own adoration that caused this discrepancy, but her indignant attitude about believing Yang could feel the same way. The conclusion she came to would eventually be correct, but until then, her investigation was proven ineffectual.

In summary, though Blake may seem to be a calm, cool, collected, and ever-calculative individual, when it came to social situations—especially those involving Yang—she was reduced to a shy, timid girl who was too afraid of rejection to even consider confessing her feelings. Blake's decision to contrast this idea was one that would both cause a great deal of stress on her ability to logically reason and would lead her to a new stage of her life—one that should begin where the story last departed.

Through the translucent white curtains did a single beam of sunlight pass through in order to land upon Blake's closed eyes. The seemingly insignificant occurrence proved able to rouse the girl from her slumber. Unfortunately, the summer's typical lethargy had finally descended upon her, causing the young Faunus to lazily sprawl her limbs about in a horizontal stretch atop the pillowy mattress and beneath the cool sheets.

Instantly, Blake was awake and confused. She had fallen asleep on a couch with no mattress and no cool sheets. Furthermore, she faintly remembered Yang being present as well. It took a moment for her to remember that not only had Yang been there, but that she had fallen asleep on the girl's shoulder and that it had been comfortable. She would have blushed at the memory if the immediate situation had not been so alarming. Her eyes darted across her surroundings before she let out a sigh of relief.

She found herself in her own bedroom. How she got here from the couch, she did not know—she could guess that Yang had something to do with it, but there was no evidence to prove this point. No matter how it happened, it did not change the fact that she was in an unfamiliar room in an unfamiliar house with an unfamiliar layout. In a word, it was a jarring awakening. Using her arms as leverage, she propped herself up to a sitting position. In the mid-morning light, the white linens of the bedding and the beige tone of the walls could be described as pure and verging on sterility. She rubbed her eyes. Despite the serenity of the situation, she was still tired and found it hard to see in the overexposed luminescence of the room.

It felt odd to her, not having to wake up before dawn or to be woken up by the antics of her teammates. This morning's silence was strangely disconcerting and foreign. Without her team present, she was able to slowly awaken rather than have to be immediately cognizant of everything around her. She thought about going back to sleep, but let this idea go. She figured it wasn't too late in the morning, but it was still well past the regular time she would have woken up at Beacon.

Reluctantly, Blake decided to begin her day instead of sleeping in. She arose, and as she walked to the closet to change into her regular attire, she remembered the night before fondly. Although her personality at the time was a far cry from her usual self, she found that she didn't mind this. With this more open persona, she was more attuned to Yang's personality. This uncharacteristic amiability was showcased during their impromptu decision to watch a movie and share a blanket, simply enjoying each other's company. She couldn't remember the plot of the film whatsoever; all she could remember was the time she had spent laughing whole-heartedly alongside Yang. The feeling of absolute comfort that she found sitting next to the blonde still lingered in her mind. She desired more of the feeling—more of Yang—and this desire was overpowering.

She was confident now, energetic due to the lack of delirium normally attributed to exhaustion. With this confidence, she made a decision—a decision that would shape her life from that point on. With this confidence and renewed vigor, Blake made the decision that on this day, she would attempt to tell Yang how she felt.

How she planned on going about this was yet to be planned, but the sentiments existed nonetheless. Blake was admittedly scared of confessing—mortified even by the possibility of ruining not just their partnership, but the entire team's dynamic as well. Still, she would find a way. This was the sort of conviction she had felt when she chose to run to the White Fang and the level of strength she felt when she chose to leave them. Unlike her joining of the organization, she felt that this decision would prove a more stable choice in that it would not cause the defamation of an entire race of people. Perhaps both parties could benefit.

By the time she was fully dressed, she was completely confident in the idea she had formed. She knew that now would be as good a time as any to speak to Yang about this. Because it was summer break, there would be minimal repercussions in regards to their combined combat abilities should Yang not reciprocate the sentiments. And although it could be reasoned that the rejection might cause a rift in their friendship, even this could not deter Blake from pursuing her goal.

What could deter Blake from pursuing her goal, however, was the lack of planning involved as to how she meant to accomplish it. This indecision found her standing awkwardly in the center of the room, her mind so preoccupied that she couldn't decide whether to sit down or head out into the hallway. All she could think about was how she planned on talking to Yang—talking rather than confessing. Unfortunately, she couldn't think of anything past getting her partner away from the others and outright saying what she needed to. She mentally berated herself for not being able to make any sort of plan even after reading the multitude of romance novels she had amassed over the years.

Invite her to dinner? Technically, they had already done that. Get coffee together? The idea would have worked if Blake wasn't inclined towards tea instead. Picnic by a lake? Now Blake knew that she was running out of ideas.

She sighed dejectedly. Had Blake Belladonna met her match? Had she finally found the one wall she could not scale? For the briefest of moments, she thought it so but banished the idea just as quickly as it had snaked its way into her mind. She reasoned that she could not make a plan because she was too anxious about the ramifications of Yang rejecting her. Timing, intentions, and a fitting locale were only excruciating variables which compounded and intersected to form an arresting web of indecision.

However, it was the following confidence, which so finely walked the border of overconfidence, that allowed Blake to devise a plan. Alone in her room, with no other individuals to measure what her own response would be, Blake felt that what was necessary was a simple solution. She decided that she would see where the day took her and would improvise along the way. Her confidence in her untested social ability and the conviction she felt in speaking to Yang were the only things keeping her from giving up on the idea and going back to sleep.

With confidence in both her goal and plan, Blake stepped out into the hallway. The first thing that she saw was that Yang's door was open slightly—a sign that she was not there. Blake found herself clenching and unclenching her hands, now anxiously balled into fists from the possibility of almost having contact with the blonde, as knowingly ridiculous as that was. She could only just see into the room, but chose to look away as not to invade her partner's privacy. She did, however, manage to see something that was miniscule in importance yet turned out to be relatively surprising. She saw that Yang's bedding was, like her own, white rather than the expected yellow.

She shook her head before refocusing on the end of the hallway. With a composing sigh, she exited into the living room but did not stop there. Upon her arrival, she heard voices coming from her left, from a separate room that was apparently prone to slight reverberation. Although she was unsure of where she was going specifically, the competence allowed by subconscious memories of the house's layout made it fairly simple to find the source of the sound. Following the noise, she entered a room that was manifestly a kitchen, as evidenced by the gleaming granite countertops and stainless steel fridge within immediate view. The sources of the voices could be seen sitting at an island in the kitchen's center, eating what had been the pizza Yang ordered the night prior.

It was a calming sight to see Ruby and Weiss conversing peacefully. Blake knew that the two got along as friends even before she began seeing the minutest signs of romantic tensions between the two, so to see them having a dialogue which did not involve Ruby becoming overenthusiastic or Weiss scolding the younger girl was a welcome sight. They were both still dressed in their pajamas, further contributing to the feeling of casualness, but even yet Weiss looked to be exceptionally aware of her posture and mannerisms. She seemed just about as used to the house as Blake was.

As the Faunus made her way into the kitchen, she was greeted with a cheery "Morning!" from Ruby and a rare, genial "Good morning, Blake," from Weiss. Ruby's reaction was to be expected, but Weiss'? Normally, a silent greeting of implied respect was the only form of reception Blake received from the heiress. Nevertheless, she accepted the greeting and wrote it off as Weiss now having the ability to unleash all of the excitement she had had pent up for the past few months. Perhaps "unleash" is not the correct term due to the fact that the heiress still struggled to retain her regal composure despite the futility of the action.

Blake walked over to the island and found a stack of paper plates beside the pizza box. As she did not intend to intrude and invade the sisters' refrigerator, she resigned to having last night's dinner for breakfast like everyone else was. As she took her single slice, Ruby asked, "So? How'd you sleep, Blake?"

It seemed to be an innocent enough question, yet it caused Blake to hesitate for an invisibly short moment. Some irrational part of her mind was telling her that Ruby knew how she had fallen asleep last night. This thought, however, was silenced by the logical part of her mind, which caused her to reply. Automatically, she said, "Quite well, actually. How about yourselves?"

"I slept great!" Ruby exclaimed. "It feels good to be back home." Blake noted that Weiss had not been the least bit bothered by her partner's outcry.

"I could actually sleep for once. Having a bunk bed that _isn't_ supported by ropes made it remarkably easier to accept." Ruby rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly at Weiss' confession. "I could get used to sleeping without constantly fearing for my life." The heiress shot a rare, teasing smirk at the youngest among them. Now Blake was sure that Weiss was legitimately happy for being able to relax. The action was so uncharacteristic and thusly disconcerting; yet, overall, Blake couldn't find a reason to complain about this show of emotion.

Blake had not noticed how hungry she had apparently been until the one slice of pizza she had taken suddenly disappeared. She hadn't realized that she had eaten it while Ruby and Weiss were talking. The two had returned to their regular conversation, the topic of which Blake could not hope to guess. Her mind was preoccupied once again with the thought of having to interact with Yang soon. The pizza had only acted as a distraction so that she could prolong the inevitable. Now that her distraction was gone, however, she knew that she could no longer wait.

She adopted the same stoic look of aloofness that she strived to achieve at all times before she spoke. "Do either of you know where Yang is?" She thought she heard a hitch in her voice as she asked it, but this only occurred in her mind.

"Yeah, she should be in the garage," Ruby said before returning to her incomprehensible conversation with her partner. Blake stood in place, confused as to where that would be. Ruby had answered as though the location of the garage was common sense. After a pause lasting only a few seconds, Ruby looked back to Blake. "Sorry! It's, uh, down the hall, over there." She pointed to a hallway attached to the kitchen, separate to the one leading from the living room to the bedrooms. "You'll know the door when you see it."

Blake nodded in gratitude, avoiding speaking so to not interrupt the heated conversation already taking place any more than she had. She followed the hallway as directed but felt her willingness to continue wane as anxiety waxed. Although she couldn't see the door, she knew it was there, and the closer she got to it, the more she questioned her actions. She was unmistakably attracted to Yang, both physically and emotionally; but at the same time, she doubted Yang felt the same way about her. Why would she? Blake knew that she could be distant and even accidentally rude at times and that Yang had openly flirted with members of the opposite gender—sometimes within her view! Her confidence that Yang reciprocated her affections quickly devolved into knowledge of the potential futility of her impending admission.

The thought of rejection made her want to sprint back to her bed, duck under the covers, and wake up in September when school was set to begin again.

She knew that this fear was childish and that it shouldn't impede the plan she had already made, but the fear was unmistakably present. She walked only a few more feet before she saw the door she knew would lead to the garage. Whereas the other doors in the house were relatively light in their construction of wood, this door was visibly heavy and made from some sort of metal. Blake had to take a breath to calm herself as she looked at this imposing, final obstacle. Beyond this door was Yang and either the greatest decision she had ever made or the most soul-crushing choice she could have impulsively rationalized.

It was worth the risk. She placed her hand on the cold metal of the doorknob, turned, and pulled.

The sight she was met with was one that did not contain Yang. Instead, there was an object in the cold concrete room that was doubtlessly something of Yang's, recalling the stereotypes Blake had created for the girl. Something so brash and powerful-looking and, at the same time, so yellow could only belong to the blonde brawler. It looked to be a motorcycle and, as such, it was an unexpected—yet somehow fitting—sight in the house of the sisters.

What was even more unexpected was the mane of golden hair, led by the signature cowlick, rising from the other side of that beast of a motorcycle. Blake froze at the sight. She immediately knew who it was and suddenly became scared for her irrational reason, devolving into a jumpy mimicry of her reticent self. What Blake saw in the blonde sight was someone who could harshly reject her, forgetting that she could also accept her wholeheartedly. In the sight, she saw something now unachievable. Fortunately, the Faunus' apprehensive flight could never be, due to both her stubborn pride in her made decision and the fact that her partner began to speak.

"Hey, Blake!" Yang greeted. "How'd you sleep?"

Unlike her sister, the girl in yellow knew how her partner had fallen asleep the night before, thus making the question all the more knowing and pointed. She stood from whatever she had been doing to greet the young Faunus, having been dressed in her regular attire sans jacket, leaving her in her yellow tank top and signature orange scarf—the reason for the latter inclusion, Blake could not fathom. The jacket was present, though only in its position resting haphazardly upon a table against the back wall.

The young Faunus found herself scratching the inside of her finger with her thumb as she thought of an answer. "I slept well," she said. In this reply, she attempted to call upon all the literary knowledge she had amassed over the years in order to create an undertone of gratitude and implications of happiness. Unfortunately, while she felt as though she was successful in this endeavor, in actuality, Yang did not perceive Blake's intentions, resulting in a noncommittal hum.

The silence was grating. Blake had intended to talk to her partner, not to stand around and watch the blonde work on her motorcycle. Hesitantly, unsurely, Blake stepped forward into the garage and found the clicks of her heeled boots against the concrete deafening. She stood before the piece of machinery, admiring it absentmindedly. She didn't know what any of the parts did, but the way they were arranged and crafted looked impressive.

"You like what you see?" She was jolted from her admiration by Yang's less-than-subtle joke and found her with a warm, distracted smile. "Made her all by myself. You wouldn't believe the acceleration on her—there's nothing on the road that can match her!" Pride was practically radiating from the exuberant youth.

Blake raised an eyebrow. "You made this?"

"Yup! I took what I learned from making Ember Celica and thought, 'Weapons are nice and all, but what I really need is a super-cool Yang-mobile.' And so I made this!" She spread her arms, showcasing the product of her work. "She's pretty awesome, right?"

Indeed, the object in question was at least intriguing to Blake. Still, something about Yang's description of the bike made her ask, "She?"

"Of course it's a she! You can't make something on your own and not have a name for it!" Just like her sister, Yang was idealistic to the point where it made Blake smile slightly. It made sense, somewhat, that one would create their weapon and name it however they liked, and this could perhaps extend to motorcycles, too.

Yang let the silence following the statement linger, creating a lack of closure that Blake wished to remedy. "What's her name?"

Yang grinned. "Bumblebee."

Blake took this information in and attempted to dissect its meaning. Perhaps she meant that the bike can only figuratively fly because of its strength. Perhaps it alluded to the idea that its rider could figuratively sting. Blake even partially assumed, if only facetiously, that it was about Yang's general color scheme being yellow while her own was black. To humor the blonde and to satisfy her own curiosity, she had to ask, "Why Bumblebee?"

The response Blake received was initially anticlimactic. Yang merely shrugged, saying, "I don't know. I thought of the name while we were at Beacon and decided on calling her Bumblebee since then."

Suddenly, Blake's internal humor became a very real possibility, and it was this very real possibility that brought her confidence back to life.

She couldn't help but smirk slightly as Yang got back to work. She saw that her partner no longer seemed to be an entity associated with possible rejection but instead another person: a real entity with similar emotions who was both understanding and kind. She saw now that she could attempt her goals and possibly achieve them as well. And to think that Yang's use of her partner's likeness to name her bike could cause such a reaction in the young Faunus was thankful. She had been ready to speak and say something life-changing; however, Yang spoke first. "Hey, Blake, you wanna come with me and test her out?"

Sufficiently caught off guard with the interrupting speech, all Blake could utter was a rare and unintelligent, "Huh?" It is not to say that she had not comprehended what Yang had asked; rather, she was unsure if Yang was serious about the invitation.

The blonde stood up and wiped her hands on a cloth behind her. "Do you want to come with me to test out Bumblebee?" she asked again. "I haven't been able to ride her since the Paladin fight, so I thought it'd be a good idea to test her out and see if everything still works." She paused, seemingly gauging Blake's contemplative expression. "C'mon," she pleaded, "It'll be fun. Just the two of us!"

The last few words seemed to click in Blake's mind. It was what she wanted, wasn't it—to get Yang alone and to tell her everything? She didn't put much deliberation into the subject before she found herself replying, "Sure. Sounds like fun." Neither was able to suppress a grin.

"All right then!" Yang said this in such an enthusiastic, sunny way that Blake couldn't help but be affected. The blonde walked over to the table against the back wall and put on her jacket before heading over to what looked to be a locker at the same table's end. The next thing Blake knew, a black helmet was flying through the air towards her. On reflex, she was able to catch it just as Yang asked a question. "Let's go now. Is there anything you need to get before we leave?"

"Yeah, just a second. Let me get Gambol—"

"All right then!" Yang repeated, cutting Blake off. Before the Faunus could object, she found Yang grabbing her by the wrist and pulling her over to the bike. "You won't need your weapon where we're going." The blonde pulled her sunglasses out of her jacket and put them on before her own yellow helmet.

As Yang detached from her partner and lowered herself onto the bike, Blake found herself subconsciously moving closer at an incredibly trepid rate. "Well?" she heard Yang ask. "Put on your helmet and c'mon!" Despite the helmet and sunglasses which obscured her lilac eyes, Blake still felt a welcoming glow radiate from her smile.

The young managed to put on the helmet, having to make her ears flush against her head beneath her bow. It was a tight fit, but she knew the strain on her head was well worth the eventual end that was to be reached. Timidly, she climbed onto the back of the bike. As she had never ridden on a motorcycle—or any form of two-wheel transportation for that matter—her knowledge as to what she needed to do was limited to what she had read in her novels. She thought it would eventually become tolerable, but, as it was, she was uncomfortable with the lack of control she had sitting on the back of it. Yang looked over her shoulder. "Relax," she said. "You're all right. Just make sure you're on the seat and put your arms around me. You'll be fine." She gave a comforting smile.

Blake could not help the fact that her cheeks flushed at the words. Yang was asking her to initiate physical contact—an unprecedented and otherwise objectionable thought. Despite her flustered state of mind, however, Blake lowered herself onto the bike behind Yang as ordered. What came next was a prime example of how affections made Blake revert to a timid, young girl. She cautiously, hesitantly, so slowly that it felt like hours for the action to finally be completed, wrapped her arms around Yang's waist.

It took a moment for Blake to interpret the sensation she felt. The position her arms were in put her forearm up against Yang's exposed midriff. And although Blake would have normally recoiled at the soft warmth of her partner's skin, she could not let go due to the necessity of holding on and the enjoyable feeling of closeness that it gave her. She was glad Yang could not see her face turn a scarlet shade but nevertheless buried her face into the blonde's hair to avoid the possibility of detection. Only the new scent of lavender alerted Blake to her action, causing her to freeze, unable to blush any harder.

"Are you ready?" she heard Yang call back.

Blake couldn't bring herself to speak, so she instead nodded.

"All right." At this, Bumblebee came alive, roaring as Yang revved the engine. The bike shook as the engine awakened, causing Blake's grip on her partner to tighten slightly. Yang looked back at her—or at least attempted to, finding that the girl in black couldn't be seen with her head in the mane of blonde hair. "Hey," she called over the engine, "there's nothing to worry about. Everything's gonna be just fine."

Blake had to ask herself if Yang thought that she was afraid. This idea could have been taken from the lack of conversation and abundance of trepidation leading up to the bike being turned on. However, Blake took this comforting as more of a preemptive consolation when she heard the low metallic screeching of the garage door lifting. She was able to lift her face out of Yang's hair to look at the sight ahead of her. Daylight crept in slowly at first but flooded the room as the metal obstacle rose. The light was initially blinding due to Blake having woken up not a half an hour before, but she could eventually see the dirt beyond.

"I'll take it slow at first," Yang said. "I'll bring her up to full speed when you're ready." She looked back to Blake. "All set?"

All Blake could manage was a feeble "Yeah." Unfortunately, she had only registered the question of "All set?" The statement that the bike would be brought up to "full speed" had unfortunately not been heard.

The bike slowly eased itself out of the garage and onto the dirt road. Blake couldn't help but bury her face once again into her partner's back despite the bike not exerting any force on its own. Yang was merely walking the bike out and still Blake found herself petrified. The Faunus found her fear irrational, as she had been comfortable with high speeds and complementary balance in the past. But this, for some reason, was different and it thusly scared her.

There was a pause when the motorcycle reached the road. Blake guessed that it was for Yang to check on her again if the slight rotation of her vertebrae and shoulders proved evident. After the pause, however, she felt the bike slowly lurch forward and Yang pull her legs up. Blake did the same and held on tighter to the taller girl's midriff. She could feel her partner's back shake from a giggle as Bumblebee began to move.

As Yang had said, the motorcycle had awesome acceleration. In this cause, "awesome" can be used in both the modern and traditional senses. The bike moved slowly at first, easing its way down the dirt road, but Yang gradually brought it up to speed limit as they found asphalt. Blake had not been too keen on the idea of the two-wheeled machine at first but soon came to accept it as a technology as harmless as she had originally thought. She became comfortable with the speed as the ride progressed, due in large to the comforting figure that she could grip onto.

While she was no longer scared, she couldn't bring herself to remove her face from Yang's hair. The situation was just too perfect for her. Thanks to Bumblebee, she didn't have to feel abashed for the feelings she harbored and could blame whatever physical contact occurring between them on her "holding on for dear life." She could openly hold the object of her one-sided affections as the wind rushed past the both of them, causing their hair to be blown back and their respective scarves to whip around erratically.

As the bike began to break the speed limit, Blake felt absolutely at ease. She knew that her partner would never do anything to harm her. The speed could not hinder her focus on the girl in front of her. She was ready now—ready to speak to Yang about that potentially life-changing decision whenever an opportune moment arose. She could not speak yet, lest she interrupt the serenity of the moment in the midst of the chaotic world around them. Neither person nor Grimm could deter the unadulterated feeling of jubilation felt by the normally reserved girl. Everything was right in the world and it was all thanks to the figure she wrapped her arms around, whether she knew it or not.

Unbeknownst to the Faunus, Yang held a knowing, excited smirk as she gradually brought her motorcycle up to full speed and past the speed limit. This was not intended to be a simple "test drive" as she had previously explained. Rather, this was to be an outing—the first of many if the two were in agreement.

* * *

It felt as if only seconds had passed from Blake's perspective while it is to say that in objective reality a good fifteen minutes had gone by, blissful as they were. So entranced in her hold had the young Faunus been that she was unable to feel the bike slow and eventually come to a complete stop, her cheek too busy being pressed against her partner's back and her mind equally racing with thoughts of what could be and how she could make it so. Not even the high speeds at which the two travelled had been able to distract Blake from the one in front of her.

When she was finally distracted, however, and realized the bike had indeed come to a halt, a blush formed once again at her own overzealousness. Fortunately, she found that Yang did not say anything to this end but instead took off her helmet with a smile, shaking her hair free as she removed her sunglasses. In turn, Blake pulled herself from the blonde's tresses and took her own helmet off, causing her ears—and, consequently, her bow—to spring up after being confined for so long. She forced her expression to remain flat in an attempt to conceal any traces of embarrassment, but still her cheeks burned at how happy she had been to hold Yang.

Ahead of them was a short tree line which only just stood in the way of an expanse of grass and youthful activity. People inhabited this place, engaging in activities ranging from games of tag between children to pick-up sporting events between strangers. Those who were not up and about sat in the shade, enjoying each other's company as they conversed on subjects only known to the speakers. Where the girls were was a parking lot, moderately filled. Bumblebee had been parked adjacent to the grassy precipice of the park, separated on either side by at least two parking spaces. Despite the others in the area, the two were relatively alone.

It seemed as though it was a nice enough place, but it wasn't Yang's home. Blake reasoned that the "test ride" her partner had talked about was not meant to be just riding Bumblebee around and then returning home. By this point, it wasn't surprising to find that the girl had sly, ulterior motives. Still, she had to ask, "Yang, why are we here?" She wasn't as much annoyed as she was confused—she couldn't be annoyed at Yang, today especially. She wouldn't have asked if the rest of the team had come along; that would have led to an assumption that they were going to relax at the park for a day. However, because it was only her and Yang, Blake was confused.

She could see Yang take a deep breath before turning back around to her and grinning widely. "You'll see," she said before dismounting the bike, leaving Blake to realize her precarious position without forward motion. Immediately, Blake's feet went to the ground, preemptively trying to balance the bike which conceivably would have toppled over. "Need a hand?"

"What about the kickstand?" the young Faunus worriedly asked, only just keeping her voice level enough so she couldn't sound scared. "Don't you need to put that down or something?"

"Please," Yang scoffed. "Why would I put all that effort into making this and just slap on a kick stand? She's got a gyroscope—built that too! Now, come on!" To emphasize her point, she extended a hand.

Rolling her eyes, Blake took it and was quickly pulled to her feet. As Yang had said, there must have been a gyroscope in the bike because it stood without any visible assistance. However, Blake was unable to observe this for long as she realized the grip on her hand had not relented. She looked to her partner, finding that she held a neutral, almost contemplative look about her. This lasted for but a moment before it was masked with an exuberant grin. With a wink, the blonde pulled her partner towards the park.

Blake soon found herself having to run to keep up with Yang. She was led onto a cement path that entered and then ran the perimeter of the park, touring the ponds and picnickers which made up this merry scene. And as they ran, she saw a fork in the path ahead with one side continuing on around the perimeter and the other seeming to have faded due to disrepair. This secondary trail could be less considered a path than an opening in a denser part of the tree line, which, judging by the consistency of the wooded area, Blake could tell was a forest—a forest Yang was pulling her towards. They ran off the concrete path and onto the nearly invisible dirt trail blazed by hikers of years prior.

The two ran into the forest as partners.

The lack of information divulged by this direction left Blake with questions. "Where are we going?" she called, feeling the need to raise her voice to overcome their eager speeds.

"You'll see!" Yang called back. As such, Blake resigned from questioning any further. She knew that when her partner was in a secret-keeping mood, there was nothing she could do to sway her. She could only trust in her partner that she would eventually see.

As the two ran, sunlight streamed in from the canopy above. It fell in glimmering stripes and spots, enough to make the path they ran only just visible. Shadows fell upon the scenery behind the first row of trees on either side of the partnership, leaving Blake to only gaze ahead. What she saw was a similar shadow that veiled the path ahead, as well, consistently keeping a sizable distance away from the two as they ran. Even with her enhanced night vision, she could not penetrate this obscurity.

Knowing that looking around wouldn't do her much good, Blake took the time to admire her partner even more than she had already. She felt that she had had enough time to do this on the bike and that even the observations then had the possibility of being intrusive, yet she couldn't help herself. The touch of Yang's hand made her feel wanted—not as a tool to be used in an organization, but as her own person. The warmth that came from the girl, despite the fingerless gloves blocking complete contact, made Blake feel safe and that she didn't have to watch the shadows for any signs of danger. She felt confident that if a Nevermore swooped down from out of nowhere, the two alone could slay it without having their weapons. She felt at peace.

Blake had been patient as they ran, and this patience paid off when the shadow in the distance became a faint light that grew ever brighter as the two neared it. This light opened up into a sight which Blake knew was the secret Yang had been holding back. The two slowed to a casual stroll that eventually led to the two completely stopping.

In the middle of this unnamed, less-than-spectacular forest was a somewhat large clearing, open to the sky above yet not subject to the brutal rays of the summer sun. In it was a glittering pond, centered in the grassy opening. Small waves rippled the surface of the otherwise pristine body, affected by the smallest breeze that perennially blew across this temperate glade. Standing before the water was a bright marble bench that remained solemn and resolute. It looked untouched and pristine—as though no life whatsoever had ever existed in this place.

Yang stepped forwards slowly, pulling Blake towards the bench. "Here we are! Just as I remembered it. Man, nothing's changed." For some reason, Blake expected a response from the place—any noise; a chirping bird or insect, perhaps—but no response was given. It was oddly peaceful here. "Well, the path is pretty much gone, but it was getting that way anyways. Other than that, I don't think anything's happened here. Who would've thought that after all these years the bench would still be here?"

"Years?" Blake asked. She was surprised; Yang had acted as though it had only been months since her last time here.

It was in this moment that Blake saw a smile on her partner's countenance that she had never before seen from the radiant girl. It was reflective, almost remorseful, having fallen from its prior excitement at the mention of time's passage.

"I used to come here as a kid," Blake heard her say. Yang didn't turn to look at Blake but still pulled her slowly towards the bench. "Mom used to take Ruby and me here whenever we came to the park. She said it was because I was being too rough with the other kids, but we both knew it was because Ruby felt left out." It was confusing to the Faunus how her tone had shifted from being happy to being outright reflective and nearly remorseful. Yang turned the sad smile to look at Blake. "She never was good at meeting people."

Not knowing exactly what to do in this sort of situation, Blake tried to the best of her abilities to keep her partner's spirits high. She gave a comforting squeeze to Yang's hand, thus causing the blonde's smile to warm slightly. She then moved ahead of Yang and pulled her over to the bench quicker than they had been moving. It hurt to see her partner this way; even if it looked to be a minor decline in enthusiasm, a regretful Yang did not sit well with the Faunus. She was supposed to be the one in the group who had nothing wrong with her past—the one who was there to keep everyone's attitudes positive. She wasn't crying, but Blake could tell she hurting, and this pain was steadily increasing. That is why, once she sat her partner and herself down, she insisted, "Tell me about her."

Yang cocked her head slightly to the side. "Who? My mom?" Blake nodded. Yang looked to the ground, remorse finding its way back to her features. "She was…I don't know. She was a lot of things. Ruby looked up to her. Where do you think she got the idea of making the world a better place by being a huntress? I can tell you it wasn't me." Both shared a rueful smirk.

"And I guess I looked up to her, too. She never said 'no' when somebody asked for help and she was always there whenever you needed her. There wasn't anybody she wasn't friends with. And there wasn't anything she couldn't do."

Blake smiled softly, "I can see the resemblance."

Yang's smile returned. It was happy, but tears looked to be building up in the corners of her eyes. "Thanks, Blake. That really means a lot." She looked out over the pond. "I try to be like her for Ruby, and I think I'm doing an all right job. I mean…Ruby still misses her and I know I can't take her place, but I think it could be worse."

Hesitantly, Blake put her hand on the girl's shoulder. "Well, if it means anything, I think you're doing a good job. It's obvious she looks up to you, Yang." This caused the blonde to raise an eyebrow at her. "You should have heard her calling your name on initiation day. She was scared and all she wanted was her big sister by her side."

"How'd you hear that? She landed a ways away from us."

Blake didn't feel like telling her partner that she had followed Ruby for a short while in order to gauge her combat skills—much like she had done with a great many of the initiates. Instead, she rolled her eyes upwards, directing Yang's gaze to her now twitching bow. This made Yang giggle shortly which subsequently caused Blake to smile.

"Thanks a lot, Blake." Before she knew what was happening, Blake found a mass of yellow hair draping across her vision. Yang had leaned over to rest on the Faunus' shoulder and let out a sigh. "I mean it," she said, eyes trained on the pond. "Thank you. I try to tell myself that I'm doing a good job, but every once in a while, it feels good to hear someone say it."

Though the contact was initially jarring, Blake soon felt at ease with the feeling. She couldn't think of anything to say—she didn't feel the need to say anything. In a move so extroverted that not even she would have believed it to be possible, Blake placed an arm over Yang's shoulder and pulled her closer, quietly gasping at the acquiescing touch and finding herself markedly confident once her fingers reached her partner's arm. Yang didn't recoil at the contact. On the contrary, she warmed to it and moved closer, burying the side of her head into Blake's neck as the two watched the pond glitter.

They sat in a comfortable silence for some time as they huddled together in an attempt to ward off Yang's negativity. Blake would occasionally rub her arm, making sure that whatever had been troubling her was gone. Yang, meanwhile, did not move from her position, choosing instead to remain noticeably attentive to the girl beside her. She radiated a warmth that compelled Blake to move closer, herself, and a subtle breeze wandered its way across the two forms, intermingling their hair for only a few moments. It was in this tranquility and feeling of absolute peace and perfection that Blake knew that any other moment would never suffice.

"Yang?" she asked.

"Hmm?" Blake could not only hear Yang's hummed response, but she could feel it reverberate through both of their bodies.

She hesitated. Yang was so calm, so relaxed. She did not want to ruin her serenity. However, she knew the time was perfect and took a deep breath before continuing. "There's something I wanted to talk to you about. You're probably going to think it's pretty…well, dumb." She knew she was being hard on herself, but she felt that it was required to ensure that whatever happened, nothing would go wrong in the long run. Soon after, she winced at having said this, believing that it also could have skewed Yang's opinion preemptively.

However, she felt Yang shake her head. "It can't be any dumber than some of the jokes I put you guys through."

Blake took a few seconds to compose herself. She found this process of improvisation much harder than originally planned. "All right," she said quietly.

"Yang, I uh…Ever since we met, I've…No…I've had these feelings as of late and…" She was mentally berating herself. She was so flustered that she couldn't bring herself to finish a single sentence and it pained her. She prided herself on being well-read and well-spoken in times where it was necessary, and yet she could not speak now, when being well spoken was utterly crucial. However, it was the immobility of her partner that gave her confidence in the belief that Yang was there for her and that she wouldn't judge—at least, she wouldn't judge too harshly.

She felt as though a more direct approach would be easier, more efficient, and probably less painful if it resulted in failure. "Yang," she began but found as the subsequent sentence went on, her speech slowed and her volume lowered to the point of near inaudibility due to uncertainty. "I just wanted to know if—maybe—you would like to go out sometime?" Her face flushed and her heart rate rose to respective hues and paces she had never experienced before. Still, she would remain composed. She had to, lest her efforts prove futile due to the smallest of uncertainties.

She felt Yang shake once. Her heart stopped.

"I mean—it's all right if you don't want to. It was just that I—"

She was cut off by Yang lifting her head away from her. Blake was immediately horrified at the mistake that she had made. This was Yang distancing herself—potentially out of disgust. She believed she might have destroyed not only their partnership, but the entire team as well. She practically knew for a fact that she had made a mistake that cost her both her partner and a chance for a normal life.

Fortunately, these pessimistic thoughts were halted with one look at the lilac eyes that now glistened with eager hope.

"Blake Belladonna," Yang began with a smirk, "are you asking me out?" The look in her eyes was somewhat teasing, but on the whole she was shown to be more happy and full of life than she had been since Blake had set eyes on her.

The answer was a resounding "yes," but Blake didn't know how to react. What came out instead was a meek, "I-umm…Yes?" Her face was burning and her gaze was averted. She was prepared to weather any type of retaliation Yang could concoct to use against her but at the same time she was having trouble restraining her excitement. She thought that there had been no hint of negativity in Yang's voice and could not believe that she had been correct.

Although she had been prepared for most types of retaliation, she was not prepared for Yang tackling her from the bench and onto the ground with a rib-crushingly tight hug. She didn't hug back at first, too startled to do much of anything, let alone breathe. "Sure! About time you asked!" The nonchalant phrasing of the reply was cheered so giddily that it could be neither detached nor normally characteristic of Yang.

It took a moment for Blake to register the acceptance, but when she did, she drew in a thankful breath and smiled widely, reciprocating the emotions shared in the hug. Excitement, jubilation, and relief were all expressed through this contact, solidifying the covenant between the two to transcend what was mere friendship to a level of relationship previously unthinkable.

The two gladly stayed where they were, lying down in the grass with arms wrapped around each other in an almost competitive attempt of who could hug the hardest for minutes which felt like blissful hours. Blake couldn't suppress a beaming grin and could not stop her Faunus traits from perking up. She felt that what she had here—what she had now with Yang—was everything she'd ever wanted or would ever need. Within Yang's embrace, all thoughts of her time in the White Fang vanished. In her hold, all troubles regarding her home and crowds of people were forgotten. In this moment, nothing else mattered to Blake except the girl before her who held her so tightly and the warmth which now consumed her. It was a safe, strong hold—one that she knew Yang would not relent from for some time.

Ever curious and unfamiliar with even friendship outside of what she found in her team, Blake found herself asking, "Yang, what does this mean for us now?"

The girl in question pulled away just enough so that she could look into her partner's golden eyes. She smirked. "I think you know exactly what this means now," she said, adding at the end, "girlfriend."

Blake shivered at the title. Feeling herself begin to tear up, she buried her face in the crook of Yang's neck so that she wouldn't be seen crying, even if it was out of joy. The unintended side effects of this action were not at all unappealing to the Faunus, for as she buried her face in Yang's neck, she smelled the distinct scent of lavender—not that associated with synthetic scents, but that of the flower. She had smelled it before when she had clung to Yang on the way to the park, but now the scent was more prevalent and less forbidden. The second side effect was that of Yang's hand reaching up and scratching her ears through her bow. And unlike their flight to this sunny city, she did not object whatsoever. The action elicited a low purring once again and caused Blake to only further bury herself in Yang's neck. She couldn't care about holding any sort of aloof appearance at the moment because Yang was her girlfriend now and she was happy.

"You know, you've gotta take this bow off sometimes. You look better without it." Not only could she hear Yang, but she could feel her speech due to the close proximity caused by the hug.

The suggestion was sincere and constructive—something that Blake rarely heard outside of the comments she was usually given. She held Yang tighter. "I-I think I can make it a point to do that."

Another period of peaceful silence lingered between the two, further distancing them from reality. This silence persisted for a few minutes, leading to mere observations of each other's breathing patterns and heart rates, before Yang had to break it. "Hey, uh, I hate to be the bearer of bad news and all, but I told Ruby that I was only going for a test ride. I want to get up probably as much as you do, but she might be getting worried because we haven't come back yet."

"You told me the same thing," Blake chided lightly.

Yang pulled away—much to the Faunus' chagrin—to give her an incredulous look. "And you're going to complain about it? Like, right now?"

Blake laughed. "Fair point."

Even with the suggestion of leaving on the minds of both girls, neither could be bothered to move from their embrace, as shamelessly ardent as it was. However, the will to leave grew stronger over time and forced the two to their reluctant feet. Now separated and standing, all they could bring themselves to do was stare excitedly into the other's eyes. The stare never led to anything; the two were just content to admire. The impromptu staring contest ended with Yang asking, "Ready to go?"

Blake smirked. "Does it matter if I say yes or not?"

She was answered with Yang taking her hand and intertwining their fingers. It was a foreign feeling of closeness and unadulterated affection which sent tingles down Blake's spine. It was a warm sensation; not to where it was overbearing and uncomfortable, but to where it felt right. She felt wanted—she could tell from the unwavering grip that there was no possibility of letting go nor would there be logical reason to do so in the present situation. The logical part of her mind, which existed outside of the haze of emotions caused by the touch, told her that this openly excited persona was not her own. However, she went with it and accepted this as a once-in-a-lifetime demeanor which she could let herself enjoy. She knew that this extroverted state was fleeting and would not be a normal occurrence, but she could allow herself to hold onto Yang as she was guided to the forest path.

To think that her endeavors were fruitful is even still baffling to Blake. She took a chance and it paid off, and yet she still couldn't grasp the significance of this. She had an idea about the importance, but she could not wrap her mind around the fact that Yang said "Yes." She felt like hugging the blonde again—to shower her with grateful affections until they were both aware of how important this decision was. She felt like moving closer to the source of warmth beside her, but she was content to just hold onto that gloved hand and walk through the forest, unfazed by the shadows around her.

The two walked out of the forest, hand-in-hand, as a couple.

Everything in the park appeared to be more vibrant with Blake's new perspective. The leaves were greener and could be seen to shake with even the slightest of breezes. The children in the park seemed louder and full of life. The cyan sky seemed to shimmer and the sun above felt as though it had become warmer and increasingly tolerable. Blake looked to her partner-turned-girlfriend and found her to have an indomitable smile. She leaned into the blonde to get her attention.

Yang looked over and, with the same grin, asked, "You ready to go?" Blake nodded into her arm. "All right, let's do it." She paused for a moment, her grin slowly changing into a smirk. "Ruby's probably worried by now. We'll need to get back at," she paused for effect, "Blake-neck speed."

Blake groaned playfully and bumped Yang with her shoulder. "What did I get myself into?"

"A world full of puns, Blakey." Pride welled in her lavender eyes. "A world full of puns."

Blake untangled her fingers from Yang's. "You're lucky I'm in a good mood," she teased as she mounted the bike. She felt comfortable with teasing Yang back like this and found that she had left her standing and staring at her, watching the once hesitant girl sit alone on the bike. Blake simply smirked at her gawking girlfriend as she put on her helmet. "Are you coming or not?"

In an instant, Yang regained her energetic grin as she moved forward, stumbling at first but finding her footing before reaching the bike. She vaulted onto the vehicle, shaking it as she landed. As she smiled back at the girl in black, putting on her sunglasses and helmet all the while, she asked, "You wanna know why I named her Bumblebee?"

Blake smiled back. "Why?" She was answered with one of Yang's signature mischievous smirks. Realization set in and thus Blake rolled her eyes. "You really are incorrigible."

"And you asked me out. What does that say about you?"

"It shows that I made a smart decision." Blake then proceeded to wrap her arms around her new girlfriend and buried her face into the mane of golden hair. She failed to see the radiant smile on lingered on the blonde's features as she revved the engine of her motorcycle. She walked the bike backwards, out of its parking space.

Bumblebee lurched forward, instantly reaching speeds deemed unsafe for those not on the bike but pleasant for those who were. The two quickly reached the main roads, flying along outside of downtown Vale. Blake clung to her partner, finding the girl vastly more exhilarating than the high speeds at which they travelled. It was on this day that the secluded, reserved Blake of months prior was transformed into a more emotionally available, more trusting person who found solace in an another rather than the escapist fantasies of her novels. She had Yang to depend on now; she had the object of her affections in her grasp and she was ecstatic, more so than she had been within available memory. Blake held herself close to Yang, knowing that whatever path life took from this point forward, she would not be alone.

* * *

I hope that was at least somewhat admissible for the definitive beginning of their relationship. I thought it worked, but at the same time, I've seen far too many fanfictions with slow-burn relationships that culminate with the end of the story being the two "main" characters admitting their feelings. I fear that the amount of eventual relationship stories have ingrained an idea in the fanfiction community that having the actual relationship start relatively early is a bad thing. However, with the story I have planned out, the relationship is only going up from here. I should probably note that the rating of this story will remain "T" and this decision will not waver. Take that as you will with the statement that "the relationship is only going up from here."

I apologize if the initial narration in this chapter was a tad jarring or different from what is usually written in fanfiction. However, the narrator in this story has character, as shown by the number of instances where the construct has expanded upon certain words or descriptions. It is from this personality that I feel that an aside can work every once in a while. The aside also works to elaborate on aspects Blake's personality or other key motives that need expressed elaboration that would otherwise be ignored due to the perspective of the storytelling. The narrator only describes Blake's mental processes as they occur and the scene that is presented before her, so because Blake does not actively think about herself as socially awkward, the narrator would be unable to describe this in regular narration. I would not expect too many more of this sort of blatant aside. Perhaps one or two more may occur as the novel progresses, but I think any more than one or two would seem gimmicky.

I would also like to note something that could have been. In the scene in the garage before the dialogue between Blake and Yang begins, there is the phrase, "the Faunus' apprehensive flight…" In this phrase, I originally wanted to use a word that I've always desired to use but have never had the opportunity to do so. I would have liked to have used the word, "pusillanimous," but considering that the word would have caused a break in a somewhat tense scene (That word will make most look up the definition, effectively pausing the scene.), I decided against it. I'm noting this for those like me who enjoy uncommon vocabulary from time to time. The word would have fit so well and on multiple levels, yet it could not be for the sake of the story's pacing. Oh well. Maybe next time.

Once again, thank you for reading. Stay safe and stay tuned.


	4. Chapter 4: Vale

I hope everybody is having a good week. I know I have. Between finalizing a few important plot points for later in this story and generally accomplishing what I needed to and more in my personal life, I'm feeling pretty good about this week.

Onto the part of the author's note that is actually about the story its posted in. For this chapter, when I originally wrote it, I made it a point to limit the amount of text written around a line of dialogue. I felt that with a majority of the subject matter being covered in this chapter, a lighter dialogue format would work best. When having a conversation between four characters, dialogue within lengthy paragraphs can detract from the attempted tone. Plus, it was somewhat refreshing to not have to encase a statement taken at face value with rationalizations, logic, and motives. Still, it didn't seem to keep the word count down.

One final thing I'd like to note is that there is a reference in this chapter that those who have not seen anything from Rooster Teeth other than RWBY probably will not understand. Even if you do not know what it is from, you will know the where the reference is when you read it. As to avoid spoiling the chapter, I will post the source of the reference as well as where it was if anyone happened to miss it in the author's note at the end of the chapter.

I think I've gone on long enough with this author's note. Here is chapter four of _Valence_.

* * *

Chapter 4: Vale

It was surprising to Blake how little time had passed since she and Yang had departed. It was still midday and the sun hung high amidst the infrequent clouds. She found that between the high speeds of the motorcycle and the utter bliss felt by Yang's recent acceptance, time had slowed to a wonderful crawl. Perhaps it was her own perspective, but while she was with Yang, she found that minutes passed by like hours due to her desire to savor the moment and commit as much as she could to memory. When the metal door of the sisters' garage drew upwards, the sound was not as grating as it was before. More so, it had an odd feeling that made Blake think of home.

Home was a word seldom used by the Faunus. The implications of a stationary location that associated itself with a community and a family were no longer applicable to the young woman. Between the nomadic wanderings and the cell-type structure of the White Fang, Blake hadn't truly had a home since before she joined the organization. Even at Beacon, amongst trusted friends and competent allies who would readily defend her, she could not feel completely accepted and secure as one would feel in his or her own home. However, it was this house—this home of Yang and Ruby—that influenced the restoration of these long-lost sentiments.

The reason for this was not the house itself nor was it the quiet landscape surrounding it, but its occupants. The eclectic bunch that inhabited the building existed in such a chaotic balance that there was never any time for superfluous worries or uncomfortable sentiments. Between teasing remarks, minute scolding, or attempts at inspirational speeches, Blake found herself constantly surrounded by stimuli that would never make her feel like an outcast. Each of her teammates had their own quirks about them, so it was doubtless to Blake that she was in accepting company.

While the feeling of acceptance was due to Team RWBY as a whole, a large portion of this feeling was caused by Yang's particular acceptance. As the motorcycle found its way into the garage, Blake continued to hold onto the blonde. Yang had been caring enough in the past to not remark negatively on her Faunus heritage, choosing to immediately accept her for it instead. She had shown undeniable strength on the battlefield and proved to contrast Blake perfectly, creating an unstoppable force between the two of them. Moreover, Yang had gone out of her way to be kind to Blake; making her smile when she needed it most through the various jokes and puns she often made, complimenting her on her intelligence or combat style, and even going so far as to invite her into her home for the duration of their summer break.

She was shaken from these thoughts as the bike was parked and her partner stood. She reacted tightening her grip on the figure in front of her. Unfortunately, she could not stop Yang's stronger body from moving. As Yang dismounted the bike, Blake submitted to the thought that she had spent enough time clinging to her partner and that it was time to head in. With a small, sincere smile, she replicated Yang's actions by taking off her helmet and looking over at the standing sight. Her vision then drifted to the door that led to the home's interior. This raised a question. "What are we going to do about telling Ruby and Weiss?"

Yang's eyebrow piqued. "What do you mean?"

"Are we going to tell them or keep it a secret? I know it's not standard for girls to date other girls—let alone a Faunus to girl date a human—"

Yang cut her off, which was odd because she usually allowed Blake to finish her thought unless there was some sort of comedic effect to her interruption. However, there was no such humor in her tone in this interjection. "I'll take care of Ruby. Weiss'll probably figure it out on her own." She then sent a reassuring smile. "Don't worry. They won't mind. We're teammates, remember?"

Blake took a breath to calm herself. "All right," was all she said before she dismounted the bike. As she stood, she saw Yang standing by the door, her hand on the doorknob.

"Ready?" she asked. Blake nodded and the door was opened.

Blake followed close behind as Yang entered the home. She hadn't realized how hot it had been outside until she felt the rejuvenating touch of the home's air conditioner. Now she was acutely aware of a slight sheen of sweat that had existed on both her and Yang's skin, leaving the two to have slightly glowing faces—though, this effect was not solely caused by the warm climate. They walked down the dark hallway into the kitchen. Unsurprisingly, Weiss and Ruby were not there as they had been earlier in the day. The pizza box and plates from earlier were not to be seen either, presumably disposed of in an orderly, Weiss-like fashion. The couple continued to walk through, on the hunt for their teammates. Blake quickly glanced at the clock on one of the room's appliances. It could still be considered morning, if only just.

As the two entered the living room, they found Ruby and Weiss sitting on opposite sides of a coffee table. Both were dressed in their regular attire and seemed to be ready to tackle the day ahead. Upon closer inspection, one could see that a map sat upon the table and held both of the girls' attention. It was only with Yang clearing her throat that the two were stirred from their trance.

"Hey, you're back!" Ruby observed. "How does she run?" For some reason, Blake was not at all surprised that Yang's sister knew of the "test drive" before she did.

Yang beamed. "She runs great! It's like I never even left her alone. The only thing that I might need to fix is the—" Yang stopped what she was saying to look at the subtly icy look Weiss was giving her. "Actually," she started again, "Ruby, you wanna go to the other room to talk about it? Weiss looks more bored than she usually does." Blake had to suppress a laugh. Yang could be uncharacteristically deceptive at times, as evidenced by this improvised distraction.

"Sure thing," Ruby replied and stood from her seat. She looked at Weiss sheepishly before telling her "Sorry" and following her sister.

This left Blake to seat herself where Ruby once sat, choosing a more reclined, relaxed position than the younger leader had taken on it. She gazed from afar at the map on the table. The map was of downtown Vale and had markings on it that must have come from the black marker that lay beside it. Her gaze shifted away from the diagram—not attempting to decipher it from her current distance—to the white-haired girl sitting before her. Yang was right when she said Weiss looked bored; however, there was a definite annoyed state hidden behind the uninterested visage. Weiss gazed inquisitively into Blake's eyes for a few long seconds before asking, "What were they talking about? Who is this 'she' they're referring to?"

Blake shrugged indifferently. "Yang has a motorcycle. She named it."

"Of course. She _would_ have a motorcycle." Benign sarcasm laced every syllable. She paused again, looking at Blake as though she was an object to study and analyze. "And I'm guessing you two went out?"

Even at the words "went out," Blake didn't feel the need to blush or deny the claim. Now that she and Yang were dating, the phrase was appropriate. Still, she could have her roundabout fun with the observational Weiss. "Yes," she replied, "we went out for a test drive on her motorcycle."

"Where did you two go?" This question did not contain a pause before it, making it seem relatively sudden coming from the heiress.

Once again, Blake shrugged. "Nowhere in particular."

Weiss' next response came in the form of her slightly cocking her head and giving Blake a look that silently asked, "Do you expect me to believe that?"

Blake relented, if only slightly. She didn't want the heiress to become frustrated with the game and quit before she learned about the relationship. "We went to a park."

"A park?"

"I didn't see any name on it, so I can't really say much more than that."

"I would think that you would have seen where you were headed," Weiss stated. "So, where was this park?"

"I didn't see where I was going." Blake held her calm demeanor. "It was my first time on a motorcycle and I couldn't bring myself to look at the road."

"Mm-hmm," Weiss hummed patronizingly, seemingly checking off a point in her mental check list. "And what did you do at this park? Assuming this wasn't your first time at a park and could bring yourself to look."

Blake couldn't help but smirk at Weiss' form of humor—she knew the heiress meant no harm in her remark but was obviously trying to get information out of her. Blake decided that if Weiss was going to passively try to gather this sort of information, the least she could do in return was to make it harder on the heiress. "We just walked around. Nothing much." She didn't bother lying to Weiss any longer. She knew how to make connections between pieces of information, so Blake decided on divulging only half-truths.

"Just walked around?" Weiss almost sounded incredulous. "With Yang Xiao Long?" Now she did sound incredulous.

"She can be calm sometimes," Blake defended.

"That's news to me." This then led to another investigative pause, this one longer than the last as the heiress scrutinized her raven-haired teammate. After a moment, she sat back in her seat and asked confidently, albeit hesitantly with the wording, "Are you and Yang dating?"

Blake was about to reply, but was unable to due to a sudden shower of rose petals and Ruby instantaneously appearing and crushing her in a hug. Although Blake had been seated, Ruby still found a way to restrain the Faunus in her seat as she exclaimed, "I'm so happy for you two!"

Blake could hear Weiss quietly say, "I guess that answers my question."

Wide-eyed and only slightly confused, Blake had to force herself into motion again. She patted Ruby on the back and looked over her shoulder to the figure standing in the entryway to the other room. Blake sent her a look that asked if Ruby was doing this because she had been told about their new relationship. Yang smiled back warmly and nodded slightly.

It took a minute for Ruby's hold to weaken and eventually drop from Blake. As soon as the young leader was able to contain her excitement, Weiss spoke up. "Well, I guess this means congratulations are in order for the both of you." Her speech and countenance were the epitome of cordiality, showing no emotion outside of detached commendation. Blake, being all too knowledgeable about stoicism, knew that Weiss was sincere in her compliments. "But," she started, looking pointedly at Yang, "if you turn her into another hyperactive dolt like you and your sister, then you will never hear the end of it from me."

Yang moved closer to the three and stood by the seat Blake had taken. She then put her hand on top of Blake's which had positioned itself on the chair's armrest. She smirked. "I can't make any promises." An odd jolt of what felt like electricity ran through Blake at the contact. Even if she was comfortable with the fact that she and Yang were officially together, she couldn't get over the surge of confidence that emanated from Yang's touch. This confidence led Blake to raise her eyebrows in a challenging expression directed at Weiss. Even if she had only been joking, the thought of somebody else dictating how the couple's relationship would play out made Blake go on the defensive.

Weiss resigned to sighing and rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Anyways," she said, purposefully trying to change the subject, "now that you're back, we might as well tell you what we were planning. Ruby?"

Taking the verbal cue, Ruby moved to stand beside the map. "Sure," she responded, sending a cheery smile in Weiss' direction before looking at Blake and Yang. "All right, so Weiss and I were thinking that it'd be a good idea to go downtown for the day and look around. She said that if we're going to be spending most of our time here, we might as well know what the city has to offer." She looked at Weiss for what Blake assumed to be approval of the summarization. When Weiss nodded, Ruby continued. "We planned on just walking around, but we can do whatever. If both of you are up for it, we wanted to leave in the next hour."

Blake looked up at Yang. "I'm all right with going."

Yang nodded and smiled. "I'm in too, but how are we supposed to get there? The only thing we have is Bumblebee and she can only carry two people."

At the mention of the motorcycle's given name, Weiss sent Blake another incredulous look. This was returned with another noncommittal shrug. Weiss shook her head before speaking again. "I've already called my driver. He should be here soon to bring us downtown."

Yang snorted, barely able to hold back laughter. "Of course you have a driver."

This resulted in an indignant humph from Weiss before she spoke again. "Anyways, you two should take care of whatever you need to before we leave. He should be here soon."

Because the orders were so similar to those given by Yang earlier in the day when they left for the park, Blake found herself immediately thinking of retrieving Gambol Shroud. She saw that both Ruby and Weiss had their weapons on their persons so she was sure that they were thinking similar thoughts of how they might need their weapons within the kingdom's capital. She stood and turned to Yang. "I'm getting Gambol Shroud. I suggest you get your weapons as well. It's better to be safe than sorry."

"Blake, are you worrying about me?" The blonde winked and the raven-haired girl blushed. While it was true to an extent, Blake had not intended on making Yang think this way. The suggestion was only meant as an act of friendship.

"No! It's not that—I—"

Yang placed a hand on her shoulder. "Relax. I was just kidding." She sent a comforting smile before continuing. "Go get your stuff. I'll get Ember Celica and be right back." At this, she left, leaving Blake standing flustered in the living room. She watched Weiss and Ruby return to planning various trips on the map set before them for a moment, seeing how quickly the two forgot about the chaos of the moment prior and how they paid no mind to the new couple, choosing instead to return to conversation with each other. Blake turned and headed down the hall to her room.

As she reached her door, she found herself looking to Yang's room, her door having remained open. Inside of the similar beige room, Yang sat on her white-sheeted bed, fitting her gauntlets and loading them gingerly. She didn't seem to notice Blake looking in on her. Blake smiled and turned into her own room. She quickly grabbed Gambol Shroud and attached the ribbon wrapped around her arm to the grip of the gun before placing the weapon on her back.

As she left her room, Blake saw Yang walking down the hall and out into the living room. Stray beams of sunlight from the rooms to her right reflected off of the golden gauntlets on her wrists as she stepped confidently forward, unimpeded by any stigma or obstacle. Blake admired the sight, seeing the girl she admired move forward with the strength and steadfastness that originally inspired her adoration. She followed silently behind.

As the two entered the living room, they could hear Weiss talking with somebody. That somebody was not Ruby; the young girl still sat hunched over the map, staring intently at the markings and locations. Yang moved up to Ruby's side and bent over to look at the map as well. Following her lead, Blake moved to the opposite side of the coffee table and looked on with the sisters. From this closer perspective, she could see that the various markings and symbols were drawn around the area designated as the "Commercial District." There was a line leading out of the district towards the more rural areas. Blake could only assume that this line was the path leading from the house to their intended destination.

The muted clicking of heels on a carpet directed the girls' gaze to Weiss. "Our driver is here," she stated simply.

"_Our_ driver?" Yang asked. "Have you finally learned how to share, princess?"

Weiss shot back an icy glare. "Watch it. You're lucky I'm letting you come with us in the first place."

"Oh, don't be that way, Weiss." Yang grinned and put her arm over Blake's shoulder, catching the Faunus off-guard. "Think of it this way: if I don't go, Blake doesn't go." She turned her sights on Blake. "Isn't that right, Blakey?"

"Perhaps," she replied with a straight face. Maintaining this composure proved to be difficult for the young woman, but the drive to tease her girlfriend was overpowering.

"I thought you were going to back me up!" Yang cried, her face forming into a staged pout.

Blake shrugged. "I want to go." She then smirked at Yang, silently letting her in on the joke and pleading for civility.

"Fine," Yang resigned, "I'll behave; but only for you." She tightened the one-armed hug she had Blake in, eliciting a straight-faced blush from the Faunus.

"Then we're off!" Ruby exclaimed as she raised a fist and walked to the front door. Weiss followed closely behind, rubbing the bridge of her nose all the while. Blake and Yang stayed a distance behind the other two, enjoying the separation from the other teammates and the closeness that Yang's hold produced.

As they reached the door, the couple found that it had been left ajar, awaiting their exit. Yang disengaged from Blake and moved to the door. "After you," she offered, bowing to emphasize her playful cordiality. Blake merely rolled her eyes and proceeded through the entryway. Yang closed the door behind her and locked it with the key from her jacket.

On the dirt driveway was an obnoxiously white limousine. The only thing moderately modest about its construction was its length being noticeably shorter than that of a stereotypical limousine. In the driver's seat was a man wearing a tuxedo who looked almost identical to the porters which had arrived at Beacon the day prior. Everything from the color of the car to the emblem on the hood signified that this was a Schnee family car. Yang gave a low whistle as she descended the small staircase of the front porch. "I almost feel bad about making fun of your generosity." She stepped closer to the car, scanning it closely for even the most minute of flaws. "It looks beautiful. You've gotta let me drive it sometime."

She received a hard "No," in return.

She shrugged. "Hey, it was worth a shot." Yang then moved towards the door, causing Weiss to noticeably flinch. "Don't worry, princess; I'm just holding the door for you all." True to her word, she opened the door and stood to the side, holding the door open for the others, giving Weiss a smug look all the while. Weiss was then begrudgingly dragged by the wrist into the car by Ruby before the two took their seats. Blake smiled gratefully as she entered the car and took her seat on the bench opposite Ruby and Weiss. In a matter of seconds, the door was closed and Yang crouch-walked over to where Blake was and seated herself in the adjacent spot on the bench. Yang leaned against Blake as she put on her seatbelt. It was hardly visible, but Blake leaned into Yang as well, the two now supporting each other.

An airy sliding noise came from the direction of the driver's seat. "Where to, Lady Schnee?" An old and professional voice called back.

"Commercial District, please," she responded. "It doesn't matter where; we'll find our way."

"Certainly, Lady Schnee," the man accepted before the girls heard the same airy sliding noise as before. No further noise came from the driver's seat as the limousine began to roll forwards.

Yang reclined in her seat, propping her right arm up on the back of the bench seat behind Blake. "Did you two figure out what we're going to do downtown?" she asked.

"Not really," Ruby replied. "We just thought that we'd make it up as we go—just look around."

"So, we're just touring the city?" Blake inquired.

"Ruby and I are willing to do anything that seems remotely interesting. We don't have to tour all day if we don't want to," said Weiss. "We'll figure something out along the way."

"Sounds good to me." Yang then leaned her head on Blake's shoulder. "Hey, Blake?" she whispered.

"Hmm?" she hummed in response, too comfortable in her current situation to utilize intelligible words.

"Is there anything you want to do while we're out?"

Blake rested her head atop Yang's as she hummed again. "Not really. I haven't enough time in Vale to know where anything is."

Yang smiled and leaned further against her. "Well, then I'll be sure to show you around."

Blake reciprocated the smile. "Sounds good to me."

The two relaxed against each other, not bothered at all by the present company. As the car drove onwards into the city, the couple stared vacantly out of the window opposite them. Together, they watched silhouettes of buildings grow ever taller and pass by the window in an instant. Occasionally, the visions of radiant blue revealed themselves between separations of buildings and from the ends intersecting roads. What had once been a massive sky in the countryside of Vale was reduced to a comfortable presence that lingered only directly above oneself as constructions grew taller and nearer.

Boredom presented itself in the cabin of the vehicle to those more loquacious and impatient. Those who could be considered introverted had been content to sit in peace beside their respective partners. Blake found herself subconsciously rolling a few particularly long strands of hair between her fingers. What struck her as odd was that the hair felt lighter than her own and, admittedly, more delicately cared for. Her eyes cast themselves upon the lock of golden hair in her grasp, her thumb rubbing along the length of the strands out of routine. Blake could only assume that Yang noticed, judging by the content sigh she let out. The young Faunus did not relent, finding the motion to be both calming and distracting—a combination suitable to combat the introduced boredom that plagued even her.

While the highway around the city had been massive and time-consuming, the path from the house to the city was relatively short—at least, compared to the excruciatingly long trip from the airport to the house. Suburban strip malls and occasional expanses of open tracts of land were replaced by terraced shop fronts, windowsills both elevated and verdant, and opulent establishments wherever the eye happened to wander. The car drove by these, its driver being on a personal mission to find a suitable place to drop Team RWBY off.

Blake was roused from her reverie by the subtle slowing of the limousine. It seemed as though Yang was as well, unfortunately causing the girls' foreheads to knock against each other. They backed away and exchanged sheepish looks as they rubbed their respective heads. The vehicle slowly came to a stop and the door was opened from the outside. Immediately, sounds of ambient chatter flooded the interior of the car. Weiss and Ruby were the first two to exit, leaving Blake and Yang to unbuckle their seatbelts, still muttering apologies to each other for the accident. The sound before had been relatively muted, but as the two left the car, the constant conversation became suddenly livelier. Not a word of distinct dialogue could be heard amongst the masses and above the cacophony came the cries of street vendors, the choruses of laughter from numerous groups of people, and even the shrill chirpings of infrequent birds. If one were to listen close enough, one could hear the rhythmically chaotic splashing of what sounded like a large amount of water.

The source of this noise was immediately known to be a large, stone fountain that stood proudly in the center of the city square that the four girls were now located. Blake could only break her gaze from the majestic sight of the cascading water to look on in awe at the marble construct that jutted high into the air with its elegantly minimalistic color scheme. The imposing sight was so different and so magnificent that it made Blake aware of her technical status as a tourist and not be hindered by it in the least. The closest comparable things the young Faunus had seen during her time with the White Fang had been nondescript, steel radio towers that appeared from time to time in her areas of operation. While those were nowhere near as aesthetic as this construction, she had been able to find something worthwhile in the metal sights at the time. In her new life, the only object that could have any relation to this had been the spire of Beacon, and while this fountain paled in comparison to both the height and intricacy of the academy's construct, to see something so extravagantly large and superfluously opulent was a contrastingly pleasing sight.

She could feel a hand position itself next to her own and intertwine its fingers with hers. Yang stood smiling at the fountain before them. Blake gave a welcoming squeeze to her partner's hand which was returned in kind. She didn't care if there was a crowd at the moment. She had her girlfriend next to her who gave off an endless supply of confidence and comfortable warmth that were both able to ward off any socially anxious sentiments.

Due to the proximity of his voice, the driver could be heard asking, "Will there be anything else, Lady Schnee?"

"No, thank you," Weiss responded. "I will call when we require your services later."

Blake and Yang would have seen the man bow his head before returning to the driver's seat had their attention not been focused on the marble pillar ahead of them. They did, however, hear the car pull away and depart, leaving the four girls to their own devices.

There was a lull in both action and conversation between the four that was soon interrupted by Ruby asking, "What now?" Even if she had been present during the apparent planning, she seemed to be overwhelmed by the current location and was now effectively lost.

"We've already gone over this," groaned Weiss. "We're just going to look around and see where everything is."

"But where do we start, Weiss?" Ruby asked, audibly concerned. She swept her hand around, pointing to the area in which they stood. This place served as a central connecting point to six visible roads—two more could be assumed to have existed, however, various booths and passersby obscured any possible view of them.

Weiss was becoming visibly frustrated, a frown already having solidified itself upon her face and her eyebrows furrowing deeper by the second. "It doesn't matter which way we go. No matter where we go, we'll still achieve our goal of exploring the city."

A quick tightening of the grip on Blake's hand alerted the girl to Yang's attempt to get her attention. She looked to the blonde and found that she had moved closer, if only slightly. "Hey," Yang whispered, "what do you say about us going off on our own and giving them some alone time?" When Blake looked, she found the girl to have a mischievous smirk.

Blake smirked back. "Sure," she drawled. "You want to give _them_ alone time." This was returned with a playful glare. She laughed lightly. "I'm fine with it though." She felt her arm being pulled away by Yang, but she pulled the blonde back. "If we're going to separate from them, we need to set up a rendezvous point for later."

This caused Yang to pause and cease her pull on the Faunus. "You've got a point," she replied, still whispering, yet with a newly acquired smirk. "Hmm, now how to go about this…" Blake didn't necessarily like the mischievous overtone that the out-loud thought carried. With one hand already with Blake, Yang placed her free hand underneath her own chin, resulting in a form of contemplative pose that Blake felt was only for show. It only took a second for Yang to snap out of the pose and wink at Blake. Increasing her volume, Yang called out to Ruby and Weiss, "Hey, lovebirds!" This elicited a blush on the parts of both girls, but nonetheless garnered their complete attention. "Me and Blake are going to head out. We'll meet you back here at seven. See ya!" She didn't give the two any time to voice their complaints before she and Blake quickly walked off with equally satisfied smirks.

Neither of the two knew exactly where they were heading, they just knew that they were heading into the city blindly and were fine with that as long as they were together. They weaved through the crowds of inconspicuous figures and unidentifiable booths and stalls towards any street that would get them away from the city square. A mix of mischievousness and mirth coalesced in the minds of the couple as they fled from their teammates for the benefit of both parties.

Blake felt the grip on her hand tighten once more as they ran towards a crowd incidentally blocking the way to the nearest street, intent on barreling through it. The grip remained steady, allowing Blake to keep her eyes open as she ran through the mass of people. Previously, she would have not been able to focus on anything but the possibility of the crowd sending her condescending glares from all angles. However, with Yang's grip, she found herself able to make her way through the crowed unfazed, intact, and with her focus solely directed at the golden mane ahead of her. It felt as though only a moment had passed between when Blake first saw the crowd and when she saw the street ahead. Unlike the situation at the airport, Blake could not feel any sort of anxiety from the contact from Yang, instead finding a comforting embrace from her girlfriend.

Ahead was a street of cobbled stone, intended for only foot traffic. Various cafés and restaurants could be found on either side of the promenade and existed on both the ground and on a few terraces above. Rustic shops intermingled with cutting-edge technology stores, both types proving to be equally successful judging by the steady flow of ingoing and outgoing customers. A jaunty tune distantly affected the air, making the path seem all the livelier with the brassy sound. A beam of effervescent radiance descended upon Blake in the form of Yang's smile. "I guess this is it. What do you want to do?"

Blake subconsciously ran her thumb along Yang's grip as she answered, "I'm up for anything. What do you want to do?"

Yang hummed in contemplation. Blake could see the violet orbs scan the store fronts within the immediate vicinity. She looked to Blake uneasily. "How about we find a clothes store?"

There was a period of silence attributed to the falling interest in the suggested action on the parts of both girls. Blake didn't want to say anything rude with it being the first day of their relationship, but after seeing the overt look of dread in Yang's eyes, she knew that they were having similar thoughts. "Yeah," they both drawled condescendingly. "Maybe that wasn't the best idea," Yang said. While Blake wasn't opposed to the idea of owning different items of clothing, she believed that they would have been a waste of money when she already had multiple copies of the same outfit that was used for both combat and casual wear. She believed that if she was to buy clothes that were solely intended to be worn around casually, then they would only be proven obsolete once school resumed. She believed that Yang's disinterest was caused by her impatience and her affinity for anatomical attractiveness rather than exterior, material supplements. There was also the fact that Blake wanted nothing to do with a potential crowd or judgmental employees, but she wouldn't make this apparent if her pride had any say in the matter.

"How about this," Blake offered, "we each pick a store we want to go into and after we browse for some time, we'll see where our enthusiasm puts us." She felt as though it was a plan destined to fail and would only last for a short time, but it was a way of getting away from the previous suggestion for Yang's sake.

"Better than my idea," Yang beamed. "Where to?" Blake was about to object and offer her partner the first choice, but the blonde already had a counter prepared. "You came up with the plan, so you get to pick first."

Blake smiled gratefully before pulling her girlfriend along down the street. She had a destination in mind already—actually, it is to say that she had an idea of what type of store she wanted to visit; finding the store would prove to be the more challenging part, if only slightly. With Yang in hand, Blake found the confidence to blaze a trail through the multitudes of passersby and along the cobbled road. As the two progressed, the musical sound became louder and clearer, forming into the noise of a solo saxophonist. The player was a man standing by his case, accepting donations from fans of his music. Seeing this sight gave Blake the idea to find a music store to visit. However, she had little knowledge as to where one would be, let alone her initial destination. She figured that if she could not find one on this outing, she could next time.

The couple passed by the man, Yang dropping spare change into the case as she passed, and continued for some time along the pathway. In a matter of minutes, Blake stopped in front of a store with a title that made Yang erupt in laughter. It was a moderately large bookstore that Blake had never heard of named, "Novel, Tea." Blake's interest had been piqued by the title due to her affinity for both novels and tea. However, she had not noticed the wordplay and immediately regretted the decision once Yang started laughing.

Nevertheless, she pulled the giggling blonde into the store. At the chiming of the bell attached to the door, both were rendered silent out of routine. While both girls knew that it was common etiquette for a patron of a library to keep their volume to a nearly nonexistent level, it seemed that in this establishment such strict ideologies were inconsequential. Small groups conversed softly and openly while browsing the many shelves while a small café occupied a corner of the space, emanating a droning noise from the multitude of conversations occurring within. With her sight trained on the shelves in front of her, Blake barely noticed that her girlfriend was pulling her towards the café. She found that the sights of the many books with unidentifiable titles were slipping horizontally from her vision as the rich (and personally offending) scents of the café overwhelmed her. By the time she was able to ask Yang "What are you doing?", the blonde was already standing in front of a barista.

As soon as she was welcomed, Yang began to speak. "Hi, I'll take a bottle of water and a medium tea." Blake sent a critical look at Yang, only to be returned with a sunny smile. In that smile, Yang made it evident that she intended on being generous—to what ends, Blake couldn't be sure. She merely rolled her eyes in indignation.

A question arose as to what type of tea was being asked for. Yang looked to Blake who sighed. "I'll have a green tea." She looked to Yang. "Don't make this a habit," she said simply.

As Yang paid, she looked back to the figure beside her. "What? Can't I treat my girlfriend to something she likes?"

It is to note that Blake's previous state of mind had been rational and controlled. The subsequent thoughts and reactions were purely irrational and spurred on by paranoia caused by past experiences, leaving the Faunus to assume a personality far different than that which most believed her to have. While Yang might have intended the sentiment and rhetorical question to seem kind and possibly humorous, it elicited an unintentional and retrospectively irrational reaction from the Faunus. Blake quickly grabbed a bottle of water, shoved it into Yang's hands, and quickly ushered her to a remote table in the corner of the room. Yang seemed to be willing to play along for the time being as she seated herself at the table. Blake sat down and turned her face to the wall, trying her hardest to hide her face from the rest of the café, keeping her Faunus traits in such a state that her bow could not perceived as anything other than a piece of fabric. "What was that all about?" The blonde's tone was a bit harsh, but it expressed such worry that it was more than compensating.

Wide-eyed and with face blanching, Blake kept her voice to a purposefully sharp whisper as she asked, "Why did you have to say that?" Despite her attempts at keeping her heritage concealed, she couldn't help the fact that her bow twitched nervously every few seconds as she scanned the faces in the café.

Yang looked genuinely confused. "Why did I have to say what?"

Blake didn't answer. She just continued to watch the crowd for even the smallest of irregularities, finding even the most minute of quirks to be alarming. Her gaze shifted from a person as soon as he or she looked up to meet her gaze. A cough or a sneeze told fictional volumes about the conspiring lot in the bookstore and the slightest changes in the room could make her rationalize a worst case scenario.

"Blake?" Yang asked.

She couldn't hear her. Her eyes were now focused on the barista from before. She was behind the counter, preparing a drink, but Blake saw her actions as attempts to mask the machinations that flowed so steadily through her mind. She thought that behind the elastic bands of her visor would be a set of Faunus ears or horns—she was even beginning to see fur from behind the headwear that didn't quite match her hair. Blake looked away just as the barista finished making a drink and looked directly at her.

"Blake?" Yang asked again, this time trying and failing to meet her partner's gaze, but. "Are you all right?" This Blake was a far cry from the one Yang had known. She wasn't calm, cool, or collected by any means, being instead visibly on edge and seemingly frightened.

All she could do was wait. Blake watched the people at the tables, their numbers multiplied by her anxiety. At any moment, somebody would object to her presence and relationship and this objection would either be made canon amongst the crowd or be banished for ethical heresy. Either would only result in a riot—she had seen this happen numerous times before with the only difference being that she was now the root of the problem. She knew she couldn't run. That would definitely start the riot. She was prepared to fight—she might not come out alive, but fighting was all that she could do. Her fingers ached for the handle of Gambol Shroud but did not dare touch it, instead finding themselves nervously drummed upon the table top. Her breathing became labored and her vision began to swim, the people in the room became but silhouettes and the room itself became noticeably darker.

Yang finally found an angle to look into Blake's eyes, but was disconcerted at what she saw. Blake's eyes stared right through her, as though she wasn't there. "Blake?" she asked one final time, placing her hand over Blake's to cease the drumming.

For a moment, the light in the room returned, the people had returned to being nonissues, and the barista became undeniably human. Blake blinked twice, refocusing on the scene around her. She saw a hand tightly gripping her own from across the table and then the worried face of its owner. "Blake, what's wrong?" It took a moment for the figure's lilac irises to come into focus, but when they did, Blake was able to breathe somewhat easier, if only for the moment.

Yang did not relinquish her hold on Blake as she picked up her seat and moved it closer her. Her breathing was still shallow and uneasy, but not indicative of physical illness. As soon as Yang was seated, Blake instinctually leaned against her arm, whispering a chant of, "I'm sorry."

The barista was motioning to Yang from behind the counter that the tea was done. However, with Blake now gripping the arm that still held her hand, all Yang could do was gesture for the barista to bring the drink over herself. The barista looked as though she was going to complain, but a burning glare from Yang squashed any chances of her actually doing so. As soon as she was sure that the barista was bringing the tea to them, Yang began focus on her girlfriend and run a hand through Blake's hair.

The majority of the apologies were intended for Yang, but a fraction of them were designated for the past. Blake had found her way back into the inescapable void of remorse and panic, but found a light to hold onto in this time of darkness. All she could do was wait for this anguish to pass.

The blonde could only hope that her actions were having a positive effect as Blake gave no immediate signs of recovering from whatever it was that ailed her. Her ears had stopped twitching, but she began to shiver instead. This only caused Yang to pull the raven-haired girl closer and to begin repeating, "It's okay," as Blake continued her apologies. She simultaneously continued to comb her hand through Blake's hair while using the thumb of her other hand to rub a small, soothing circle on the back of the Faunus' hand. Neither of these actions seemed to completely return Blake to her normal self. While she had calmed down significantly, she was still affected by whatever it was that was plaguing her. The details as to what happened were unimportant to Yang for the time being, her only priority being that of making sure Blake was okay. Unfortunately, she had exhausted a majority of the ideas that she could come up with to console her. There was only one action left that could possibly work and stayed within the bounds of rationality. Yang ignored the heat rising to her face as she committed herself to the cause of bringing her girlfriend back.

She kissed the top of Blake's head.

Yang tried to hide the blush on her face by resting her chin on Blake's head. The normally care-free and extroverted young woman had been reduced to an abashed young girl being comprised entirely of anxiety for herself and her girlfriend. She wasn't embarrassed per say—she wasn't blushing at the idea of the other patrons of the café seeing what she had done—she was blushing because of the possibility of Blake realizing what she had done and not approving of it. Even if it was a relatively tame action for the exuberant blonde, it inspired a lack of confidence on her part.

The darkness that had momentarily clouded Blake's mind faded away at the feeling of a warm pressure above. There had been something that triggered this recovery process and while she did not know how or why she was given reprieve from the void of despair, Blake did not complain and gravitated towards the offered safety. What she saw when she actually tried to look was a sight of brown, yellow, and an oddly human tone of white. Seconds progressed before Blake realized what it was that she was seeing and what the warm pressure on her head was.

Blake sat up straight in her chair, unwittingly pushing Yang back into her own seat. She was breathing heavily again, this time more embarrassed than frightened. She glanced around the room to regain her bearings. She was still in the same café as before and before her was a cup of green tea. She only just remembered ordering the drink. She blinked a few times, desperately trying to figure out how long she had been unaware of her surroundings. Her gaze then turned to the figure she had been clinging to. She saw lilac orbs worriedly looking into her own. "Blake?" Yang asked tentatively. The tone that she used told Blake that something serious had occurred and yet she could not remember what could have happened. That is, she couldn't remember what had happened at first until the circumstances of the incident came back to her all at once. Her eyes turned downcast and her bow folded backwards against her head.

Blake felt Yang squeeze her hand as she leaned towards the Faunus. "Blake?" she asked again. "What's wrong?"

In a small voice, all Blake could say was "I'm sorry."

Her hand was wrapped in both of Yang's. "Hey," she said, leaning closer to Blake in order to catch her attention. "It's all right. You don't have to be sorry for anything; you didn't do anything wrong." Blake couldn't say anything in response. She thought about refuting these claims, but chose against it, choosing instead to sit in silence. "Blake?" she asked again. "Tell me what's wrong. I'm here for you."

That last sentence caused Blake to sigh. "It's nothing," she dismissed. "Don't worry about it."

"Blake." Her tone was a combination of scolding and caring as she lifted one hand to her girlfriend's chin and tilted her head so their eyes could meet. "That definitely wasn't nothing. You scared me there for a minute—actually, more than that. You scared me for a few minutes. Just tell me what's wrong Blake."

Blake couldn't bring herself to look directly at Yang. "It's just—" Her voice hitched. It was a mixture of shame and regret that made her unable to say it at first, but a look into Yang's eyes put cracks in her barriers. "It's just that—" She sighed again, this time in growing frustration at herself. She thought that she should just say it and get it out in the open. After all, she had apparently had Yang worried for some time now. As she looked into Yang's worried eyes, she found the will to say it. "I was afraid."

It wasn't much, but the fact that her inner strife was in some way communicated—even if in a small, vague way—calmed her and made things seem a little clearer on her own part. That is why when Yang asked what she had been afraid of, she was able to confidently answer, "I was afraid for you. And maybe I was a little afraid for myself." She sighed. "Honestly, I was afraid for us. When you told the cashier that I was your girlfriend," Blake didn't bother lowering her voice at this, "I was afraid of what others might think about us."

A warm, relieved smile played across Yang's features. "Is that all? Don't worry about what others—" She stopped herself from her reassurances when she saw the somber expression that Blake still held.

"I know it's not really normal—no, that's not it. I know our type of relationship isn't really common—at least, it wouldn't be back home. I'm worried that because what we have is so uncommon, others will see us differently." Blake's eyes cast downwards. "On top of that, I don't think it helps with me being a Faunus. As it is, we're already looked upon in a negative light. I just don't want people to look at you in a negative light because you associate yourself with me." Crying wouldn't be right at this time. There was no mourning or excessive sadness, merely acceptance of an opinion as fact.

This fact was immediately proven invalid as Blake was crushed in one of the hardest hugs Yang had ever given since the two met. However, unlike the times before, this one was not out of joy, but out of care that challenged the outside world to interfere. It took a second, but Blake returned the hug, finding herself feebly clinging onto the blonde in the middle of a bookstore café as though she had been the one life raft in the middle of the stormy sea of doubt that threatened to drown her. In that moment, crying felt right. She was sorry, but for a different reason now. She was sorry that she had ever doubted their relationship—sorry that she had reacted in the way she did because of a simple term of endearment. She wanted to apologize, but Yang was already speaking.

"Blake, I don't care." The statement was final and resolute. However, even if the bias of the current hug wasn't affecting Blake's perception, she would have found the statement to be compassionately dismissive. "I don't care if you're a Faunus, I don't care if you're not a guy, and I definitely don't care what anybody else thinks about us. I care about you, Blake, and nothing is going to change that. They can think I'm weird all they want; I won't have my feelings hurt. But if they try to stop us, I'll fight by your side until we let them know that we don't care."

Confidence had been restored, if only slightly. Blake still held on to her girlfriend, hoping that what she said was true. It was a cynical view of the world, but in times of despair, cynicism is often welcome. In turn, Blake moved closer to the girl still crushing her. "Besides," she heard and felt the voice say before a warm weight pressed against the top of her head, "if they say anything about it, well…we're both armed huntresses-in-training." Blake could practically hear the smirk in Yang's voice as she whispered this final reassurance. Blake couldn't help but smile. Even with what Yang had said about the possibility of physical conflict, it was more than apparent that the suggestion was only a joke. Yang wouldn't drag her into any unnecessary fights and Blake took solace in this fact. Perhaps it had been the years of experience Yang had from being the big sister to Ruby that played into this protective comforting. Perhaps she really did mean that she was willing to fight for her. Either way, Blake simply replied with a sated hum of thanks in lieu of having intelligible words to reply with.

Moments passed and nothing more than Blake holding onto Yang occurred within the bookstore. Nobody except for those involved paid the action any heed, minding their own business and not caring about the couple in the corner. They didn't pay attention now and they hadn't paid attention before. Cynicism was met with equal cynicism.

Within the embrace, Blake felt arms moving from her back without the elbows releasing her from the hold. With her fear having been sufficiently diminished to a point near nonexistence, she was able to notice her surroundings and heard the out-of-place sound of moving liquid coming from above. As she pulled away from the weakened hug, she found Yang maintaining a sheepish grin whilst drinking from her water bottle. She pulled the bottle from her lips and laughed nervously. "Sorry. Probably the wrong time for this."

On the table sat the cup of tea, still warm but no longer hot. Blake could finally pay attention to it and sent a small smile to Yang. "It's fine. I should get to my tea anyway." This prompted both of them to focus on their respective drinks. Blake disengaged from her cup before Yang could separate from her bottle. "I'd feel bad about letting this go cold after my girlfriend bought it for me."

Yang just about choked on her water. "W-what?" she sputtered. It seemed as though Blake's show of how she was recomposed had worked better than expected. "But what about…?" She let the question hang open as not to cause another reaction from Blake.

But Blake wouldn't react negatively to this, having seen the error in her previous reaction by this point. "Yang, I'm happy about our relationship. I was just afraid of what others would think of us because of it." She smirked at her girlfriend. "But I think I'm fine with it now."

She took a sip of her tea as Yang beamed. "I think I'm fine with it too, kitten."

This stopped Blake's actions. "I'm not fine with that," she asserted, her tone proving that there was no hint of amusement behind her words.

"With what?"

"That…name!" She couldn't bring herself to say the word, not because it was potentially demeaning to the Faunus population or perhaps condescending on a personal level, but because it was so publicly intimate that it made the reserved girl shy at the name.

"What? Kitten?" This received a small glare. Yang laughed at the expression. "Sorry, the name's not going away." She put an arm over Blake's shoulder and said, "But I'm willing to keep it just between the two of us."

"Good," Blake stated flatly. "Keep it that way." Truthfully, she liked the name, but it wasn't something she wanted said in public. It blatantly alluded to her being a Faunus and made her want to move closer to Yang—neither of which complimented her attempted personality.

With the apparently impromptu issue resolved, the two managed to sit comfortably in the bookstore's café, sipping their respective beverages and silently enjoying each other's company. As Blake watched her girlfriend watch her, the desire to find a new book to purchase became less pressing to the point where the idea actually seemed boring. She felt content with sitting in the café rather than browsing the multitudes of aisles in the building. Even then, she wanted to leave the café that brought about memories of her recent outburst. "Yang?" What was the point of making a plan if those involved stay in the dark? "Where would you like to go? I don't really feel like getting a book here anymore."

"Are you sure?" From experience, Blake knew that Yang was masking her concerned feelings from her expression. Blake nodded, causing the blonde to drink the rest of her water. The bottle was now half full and was rapidly being drained as Yang readied herself to leave and allowed her supposed composure to fall to this nervous tick. "I have an idea, but I'd like to see if you're fine with it."

"Okay," Blake drawled, awaiting the proposition. It seemed odd to her that Yang would be doing this. She was inherently impulsive, so the act of asking for permission could be seen as an act of caution. However, Blake saw it as an attempt to make amends for whatever it was that caused her to react the way she had earlier.

"I'd like to stop by a video game shop, if that's all right with you." Yang cringed slightly as she spoke, possibly expecting Blake to respond negatively.

The response that was given relaxed Yang. "Sure; I don't see why not." She took a second to drink some of her tea, finding that it had already dwindled to below a quarter left. "What do you plan on getting there?"

There was a moment of hesitation that could be linked to surprise on Yang's part. "I don't know. I kinda want to look around and see what came out while we were at Beacon."

"Sounds reasonable." She drank the rest of her tea, finding the stoic visage she strived to achieve once again. She hoped that this demeanor would push away any memories brought up by the outburst and would make the time in the café seem relatively pedestrian to their everyday lives.

Only a few minutes passed by as Yang finished off the rest of her bottle of water. Blake could tell that she was trying to rush herself despite the size of the bottle that she bought. The sentiments were expressly excited and enthusiastic, so much so that Blake had to force herself from scolding Yang on the reckless action. As soon as Yang finished, she grinned widely, stood up, and offered a hand to Blake. After being pulled up, the grip wasn't released, forcing Blake to grab her cup with her opposite hand. The two left the café, depositing their drinks in the trash as they left. Blake couldn't help but gaze at the various titles out of the corner of her eye. Even if she was no longer interested in shopping for books for the day, she found herself at least intrigued by the titles. She forced herself to detach from this interest as the two walked back out into the warm, summer environment.

For the second time that day, Blake found a new appreciation for air conditioning. The heat of the coastal town pinched her skin and suffocated her slightly for the few seconds it took to become acclimated. It took her eyes a few seconds to catch up to her surroundings that so differed from the dimly lit café. When she could see again, she found herself being led along by the blonde whose hesitant, careful mood changed in the sunlight. She all but skipped along as she dragged Blake behind her . Although the Faunus could not see her face, she could tell that she held a joyous smile. Soon enough, Blake caught up to her girlfriend and matched her pace so that the two could walk side by side.

"I wonder how Ruby and the missus are doing," she heard Yang offer.

Blake didn't try to suppress a small laugh at the joke. "I'd imagine they have no idea what they're doing."

Yang's smile became a smirk. "You're probably right. Little sis is head-over-heels for the girl and she doesn't even know it." She looked to Blake with the same smirk. "Is it bad that I think it's kinda funny?"

"Not at all," Blake replied. "I'd imagine Weiss feels the same way judging by all the times that she's gone out of her way to scold Ruby specifically. That much scolding requires dedication." Yang laughed.

"You would know, wouldn't you?" she teased.

"Yang Xiao Long, was that intended to be pointed?"

Yang hummed as though she were mulling over the question. "Perhaps. I mean, _I_ wouldn't think it was."

Blake smiled in lieu of laughter and squeezed Yang's hand. "You're lucky I'm in a good mood right now." She looked to her girlfriend with the most caring and kind look she could fabricate. "Otherwise, I might have shown you just how 'dedicated' I really am." She dropped the façade, going back to her signature, neutral expression before actually laughing as Yang gulped while her eyes widened in fear. The Faunus leaned into her partner's arm for a moment in order to get her attention. "I'm joking, Yang. I'm not mad."

"I know, but what if you were?" She was obviously concerned, but Blake didn't worry much about it. If—and this "if" might as well have been a "since"—the two were to remain committed to their relationship, Blake believed that Yang would eventually learn her sense of humor and Blake would learn Yang's in kind. She figured that this instance of confusion would become a rare occurrence in the foreseeable future.

She leaned against the taller girl and stayed against her, not fearing what others on the promenade would think of them. "Well I'm not. 'What could be' doesn't matter when 'what is' is standing here, holding your hand. Don't worry about it too much, I was only teasing you."

Yang gradually smiled and kept walking, leading Blake down the still crowded street. With a moment to her own thoughts, Blake looked back upon the incident in the café. Her reaction had been odd to say the least. She had lost her composure at Yang's public mentioning of their relationship. Had she been in a rational state of mind, she still would have found the mention to be unsuitable for the environment that they were in, but would not have acted in such a severe manner. However, because she had not been in a rational state of mind, she had reacted in a most volatile fashion. The specific cause of this state of mind could not be found. Perhaps it was the number of people present or the infinitely irritating scent of coffee. All that Blake knew was that the instant that Yang said that she was her girlfriend, a gripping fear took control of her, causing her to act the way she had.

The only thing she knew about this fear was that as soon as the trigger was presented, rapid visions of her time in the White Fang appeared in her mind. Blake began seeing everyone else in the café as not people, but as enemies. Paranoia had been a commonplace occurrence while she had been in the White Fang, but she had gone without feeling it since she enrolled at Beacon Academy. She attributed the response to have been caused by culture shock caused by the number of patrons in the café for the time being. She didn't know the true cause of the reaction, nor did she want to at this juncture. At this moment, all she wanted was to be around Yang and enjoy the time spent with the exuberant girl. She mentally noted to come back to the issue of the reaction and paranoia at a later date because she had come to realize that their hurried walking had slowed to a crawl.

They stood before a small shop nestled between two other similarly sized establishments. Judging by the excited smile on Yang's face, this seemed to be their destination. Above, in red and white text, a sign read, "Game Place." The various posters and advertisements in the windows grew larger as Yang pulled Blake closer to the building. Unlike the other store, air conditioning was not particularly noticeable over the stifling air of the confined space. However, much like the other store, many of the people browsing were minding their own business as they scanned the shelves of titles. Yang gave a quick wave to the cashiers before heading over to the wall of games.

While the written word had been her preferred medium of entertainment, Blake was not oblivious to other forms of media. At one point in time, she had been interested in video games, just not enough to parallel her current enthusiasm for books. Over time, however, she had lost interest in the medium, although not entirely. From time to time, she would read articles on video games, trying to find a way to get herself back into that world, but having a hard time doing so. This is why when Yang studied a copy of a game titled, "Diaper Cat," she was able to add her own opinion. "I've heard of that game. Apparently, it received some great reviews."

Yang raised an eyebrow and was visibly surprised. "I wouldn't have thought that you play video games."

"I don't." Blake shrugged. "I used to, but now I just read up on them."

The blonde rolled her eyes. "What don't you read?" she facetiously asked, eliciting a similar eye-roll from Blake. "Well, since you know so much about it, what else can you tell me?"

She raised her eyebrows in a silent question asking whether Yang was teasing her or legitimately asking for her opinion. At Yang's patient expression, she figured the latter option was the case and took a deep breath as she tried to recall as much information as she could. "This is only from what I've read," she began, "but I've heard that it's an early candidate for game of the year. Apparently, the voice acting is good and it's well-written. On top of that, I've heard that the developers had an interesting and beneficial take on the cover-based shooter genre. Besides that, it looks to be pushing the boundaries of the otherwise antiquated hardware found in current-generation systems." She kept her composure throughout the entire summary of her knowledge, leaving Yang wide-eyed and gawking.

"Okay, you've sold me on it."

"What?" She had only intended on informing, not persuading. Yang had only asked her what she knew about it. The idea that this would be another incident where Yang spent her own money because of her was slightly alarming.

Yang wrapped her in a one-armed hug from the side. "I said that you sold me on the game. Now I'm gonna buy it and then we can find the newlyweds." There was a moment's pause before Blake noticed Yang's grimace. "Actually, forget I called them that. I'm not sure I'm ready to have Weiss as an in-law."

Blake simply regarded this with a short laugh in both sincere mirth and as an attempt to mask her uncomfortable sentiments about Yang spending money because of her. "Don't you want to look around a little longer? What if there's a different game that you like?"

Yang smirked. "I'm fine with this one. You seemed pretty excited about it." This caused Blake to blush out of embarrassment.

"I was just telling you what I know." She was backpedaling and she believed Yang knew it as well.

"Yeah, but you seemed really into telling me what you know." She winked. "I'm buying it. Honestly, I've been looking forward to this coming out for months now."

Now that Blake knew that she wasn't buying it solely because of her, she sighed. "Fine." This caused the blonde to toothily grin and pull her over to the registers. With a care-free swipe of a conspicuously white card, the process of checking out proved incredibly simple. It hadn't been a minute's time between when Yang decided on purchasing the game and when the two were outside.

Time seemed to have flown by without Blake noticing. When she had left the bookstore, she distinctly remembered a very blue sky above. Now an orange and yellow view dominated her vision in both the sky and on the ground. Yang swung the plastic bag containing the game around carelessly as she leaned against her girlfriend. The crowd on the street stayed about the same, but the hurried excited pace slowed now to a more leisurely one. During their time in the video game store, the street lamps had turned on, creating a fantastic trail of lights that ran the length of the darkening street. The swinging of the bag ceased. "Is there anything else you'd like to do while we're out?"

Blake hummed. "Not really. Did you have anything in mind?"

"Well," Yang began, "It should be around seven by now." Blake had to suppress any surprised expression about how much time had gone by. Because time had escaped them, Blake figured that her previous thought of finding a music store would have to wait for another outing. "I guess we should head back to the square and see if we can find Ruby and Weiss. Maybe we can see about going somewhere to eat. I haven't eaten anything all day and it's starting to get to me." Blake now felt bad about having eaten the slice of pizza that morning.

Despite the plans laid before them, neither of the two moved, choosing to look at each other in the glow of the late-afternoon sun and the nearby street lamps. There was no mischief or any teasing or sly remarks hidden behind the smiles that they both held. Only comfort and happiness radiated between the two. What had been minutes only felt like seconds as the two held their gazes on each other's eyes. When time eventually became a noticeable factor in their lives, the two looked forward again, both having heat rise to their cheeks. Blake cleared her throat in an attempt to pacify the situation. "Shall we?" she asked.

"We shall." Neither of the two could hide their embarrassment from the situation as both of their voices hitched in their own ways. They moved forward, leaning against each other awkwardly the entire way as they headed towards the city square.

Even if the two had officially established the fact that they had a romantic relationship between them, neither was completely sure that it was real yet. This awkwardness was only one instance in this initial uncertainty, showing that they were on some level comfortable with their relationship, but at the same time, they were unsure of how to act around the other. It was a mix of surprise and confusion—a disbelief that something like this could really happen to either of them and a lack of knowledge of what to do now that the relationship had been formed. However, the longer they walked down the path, the more confident their strides became and the easier it was to balance against the other in the moving embrace. This awkwardness would always exist to some extent, but it must be understood that this was only the first day in their relationship and it was yet to end. Blake couldn't have been happier.

* * *

The reference that I described in the author's note at the beginning of the chapter pertains to the title of the video game Yang bought. The name is directly pulled from a Rooster Teeth Short by the name of "Dev Cycle." I felt that because Blake is shown in the series to favor literature as a medium of entertainment, Yang should have her own preferred medium. The result was the idea that she enjoys film immensely. However, from a stylistic standpoint, I can only make a stationary viewing experience progress the plot so far. Then came the idea that she enjoyed video games due to the fact that it allows for her to involve herself in a form of media that is inherently engaging. From this, I had to think of some clever title that would be smiled at once and immediately forgotten about after. That is, I wanted to name it something original until I realized that I could keep this RWBY fanfiction a closed system of sorts by referencing another Rooster Teeth production. I should also note that this game is pertinent to the plot and will appear again in the story.

I would also like to draw attention to the writing of the café scene in this chapter. I understand that the scene starts abruptly and seems out of place and possibly out of character; however, that was a creative decision. I needed to make that scene stand out amongst the rest of the chapter, going so far as to make it overshadow every other scene in order to draw attention to it. This scene is incredibly important to the rest of the plot because it is the first instance where Blake's memories of her time with the White Fang are debilitating physically, mentally, and emotionally. More instances of memories taking precedent over the world around Blake will occur in the story, but I doubt any will be as jarring as the one in this chapter. I feel I need to note that these memories will not make this story part of the "Hurt/Comfort" genre on Fanfiction. The memories will be integral to the plot, but they will not be brooded upon.

Once again, thank you all for reading. I don't think I can express my gratitude enough without being more verbose than I already am. Your readership means a great deal to me. Thank you.

Stay safe and stay tuned.


	5. Chapter 5: Home

Honestly, there isn't much I feel I need to say about this chapter beforehand. I'm actually really happy with how it turned out so any preludes would just be narcissistic ramblings on my part.

Anyways, I'll step out of the way for chapter five of _Valence_.

* * *

Chapter 5: Home

"How are we going to find those two in this?"

The "this" in question was a large crowd in the middle of the city square—much larger than it had been earlier in the day and much louder as well. The cries of small vendors and shop owners were replaced by the amplified droning of the crowd enjoying Vale's night life. Unfortunately, this was the night life that neither Blake nor Yang could enjoy—not yet at least. The two stood at the precipice of the crowd, at the end of one of the streets that spawned from this center of activity. To the both of them, the crowd was utterly impenetrable. What was worse was that the two intended on finding two relatively shorter girls in the middle of the large crowd, as had been the plan earlier in the day when the crowd was not as numerous. Now arose the question as to how this impenetrable mass of humanity would be worked around in order to find Ruby and Weiss.

Yang was tapping her foot impatiently, sending an ineffectual glare into the crowd, hoping that this action would miraculously cause its members to disperse. Blake, on the other hand, was scanning her surroundings for any potential openings or ways to find the two girls. Her assumption that searching inside the crowd would be a bad idea seemed to remain true as she found no openings. After the events of the day, she felt somewhat at ease with the idea of entering a crowd as long as she had someone familiar such as Yang by her side. However, from an efficiency standpoint, it didn't make much sense to search for her vertically challenged friends on a horizontal plane that had many obstructions that were taller than even Yang. Her eyes shifted to the buildings above the square. "Yang," she began, catching the blonde's attention, "I think I have an idea."

"I'm all ears."

She thought the idea she had formed was a bit excessive, but she believed it had a definite possibility of working and offered it anyways. "We could head up to top of one of these buildings and see if we can find them from there."

"It sounds crazy." Blake was about to retort negatively until Yang continued. "But it sounds crazy enough that it just might work."

Blake groaned. She had walked into a reference. But she had to admit, she found it a little humorous—either that or she found the blonde to be an absolute joy to be around. Truthfully, she thought it a bit of both. She grabbed Yang by the wrist and whisked her away. "Come on," she sighed as she dragged Yang back down the street they had come from.

The two didn't walk far as Blake had only intended on finding the nearest inconspicuous place she could that would allow her the privacy required to climb up the designated building. Almost immediately, she found an alley near the building and led Yang into it. "Oh, I like this idea." This garnered the blonde a glare from the Faunus. She simply laughed.

Blake stopped in her tracks. "Really?" she asked incredulously. "We haven't been dating for more than a day and you're already making _that _kind of joke?" She wasn't necessarily angry at her girlfriend, but was ever so slightly agitated.

"Well," Yang chuckled, "you're the one dragging me down an alley at night. I can't be held accountable for your actions." She smirked.

Blake couldn't dignify that with a response. She turned down the alleyway again and continued to pull Yang along, leaving the blonde to giggle at her own joke. This giggling subsided as the two moved further down the narrow path that grew darker with each step. A subconscious caution fell upon the blonde, causing her to look over her shoulder from time to time at the diminishing light emanating from the now distant promenade. Blake, however, was unfazed by the darkness that grew around them. She noticed Yang's shifting glances but could see that there was no harm in the immediate area. She lowered her hand from Yang's wrist to her hand and gave it a comforting squeeze.

It hadn't taken the couple too long to arrive at their destination, but by the time they did, the only light from where they stood was the orange sky directly above. This left the alcove in the concrete jungle to be shrouded in shadows—this was exactly what Blake needed to proceed with her plan. Yang had to squint in order to make out the form of Blake moving away from her. Due to the low-light conditions of the area, she could only just see her girlfriend extending an arm to her back so that she could ready Gambol Shroud.

Yang was barely able to ask "Blake, what are you doing?" before said girl set the blade on her weapon to its horizontal position and moved her hands so that they gripped the ribbon that had previously been on her wrist. Blake looked back to her girlfriend, making sure that there was ample space between the two of them for what she had planned. Slowly at first, Blake began spinning the bladed end of Gambol Shroud by the ribbon, gradually letting the ribbon out to ensure that she wouldn't have to exert too much energy to maintain the force required for the action she was to attempt. As she increased the speed and power of the twirling, she focused her sights on the building in front of her, making a rough estimate as to where the blade would head if she released it. As soon as she was sure there was enough strength behind her motion and was confident that her aim was fairly accurate, she let go of her weapon while keeping her hands on the ribbon.

Gambol Shroud soared through the air, passing the multitude of windows and the metal staircase on the side of the building. In a matter of moments, the bladed end of the weapon flew past the roof of the building and kept ascending, undeterred by the fact that the desired height had been exceeded. Blake, however, felt that it had reached a suitable height and pulled on the ribbon, halting the progress of the weapon. This caused Gambol Shroud to quickly fall and clatter against the rooftop. Blake continued to pull on the ribbon until it grew taught, the blade hopefully having imbedded itself into the stone of the building's roof. "Huh," Yang contemplated as Blake began testing the strength of the attachment by applying her body's weight to it. "A grappling hook? I never would have thought of that."

Satisfied with the grip her blade had in the roof, Blake smirked in an unabashedly proud manner. "Well, we _are_ trying to be stealthy to some extent. And desperate times call for desperate meas-ears, right?" This latter comment was delivered with a playfully challenging glare.

Yang groaned at her own joke being used against her. "If you expect me to apologize for that one, I won't. I am proud of my puns and don't regret any of them."

"And I'm fine with that." Blake smiled, absent-mindedly twirling the hanging ribbon between her fingers. "I just don't want to wake up to them every day is all." Due to her inherent night vision, Blake was able to see the beginnings of a salacious grin making its way across Yang's face. Going off of the insinuations that her girlfriend's previous uncouth comment held, Blake figured that the blonde had inferred something that objectively wasn't in her recent statement. She had to at least try to keep these reactions from becoming a common occurrence. "Yang," she warned, donning a more serious expression, "if you keep thinking that, I'm going to leave you down here while I look for those two."

The grin turned into a frown as Yang conceded. "I'll behave."

"Good." Blake's proud smirk returned as she grabbed the ribbon again to test the hold. "Now we climb this up to the top and see if we can find Ruby and Weiss."

"All right." The pacified demeanor Yang had instantly vanished as she popped her knuckles in preparation. Blake almost felt bad about how she had chastised the blonde, but now she could barely suppress a smile at Yang's care-free attitude having returned. "Who's going first?"

Blake shrugged. "I guess I will. I'll see if it holds before you come up."

She then prepared herself for the climb and made sure that the makeshift grappling hook would hold, testing her weight on it one last time. It seemed as though everything was set for her ascension, but just as she was about to grab the ribbon, she heard Yang tell her, "Be careful."

The words caused Blake to hesitate. They seemed so kind and so customary and yet, in all the time she had spent at Beacon and in the White Fang, she had never heard the phrase directed towards her. She had heard it plenty of times from one person to another and had even read about character saying it to one another, but she had never heard it herself. She looked over her shoulder and gave Yang a warm smile. "Thanks," was all she could bring herself to say before climbing the ribbon.

Due to the years of practice Blake has had with Gambol Shroud, the process of climbing the ribbon proved simple enough. When she reached the building's roof, she did not bother looking out upon the city square, instead, looking down to the alley below. What she found was a fairly distant Yang quizzically pulling on the ribbon. "Don't worry," she called down, sending a noticeable glance at the bladed sheath that was imbedded into the stone of the building. "It should hold."

"Should?" Yang exclaimed. "'Should' doesn't sound very optimistic!"

Blake smirked. "You don't want to be alone in the dark down there, do you?" Yang didn't say anything in return, instead choosing to secure her grip on the plastic bag in her hand before finally climbing the ribbon. Whereas Blake's climb was more efficient and nimble, Yang's could be considered hurried and brash. The blade dug deeper into the building, but did not break away as the ribbon attached to it held without a problem. When the blonde neared the top of the building, Blake extended her hand and helped Yang the rest of the way. She was heavier than she looked, but Blake figured that this was due to the extra height and higher percent of muscle mass. In fact, Blake felt as though she only acted as an anchor as Yang pulled herself up.

Yang didn't seem winded in the least as she practically jumped from the ribbon to the roof and chirped, "Thanks, kitten!"

This caused Blake to pull away from her girlfriend and face the opposite direction with her arms crossed. "What did I tell you about calling me that?" While she had been adamant about moving away from Yang as a form of temporary punishment, she tensed as she felt a warm presence move up next to her and an arm falling over her shoulder.

"Well you can't be all that mad at me about it." The tone she had adopted was more of a teasing one now. "I mean, I can see you blush every time I call you kitten." In her flustered state, Blake hadn't realized that she had turned so that they could overlook the city square below. This view cast a light on both of their faces, presumably enough so that Yang was able to see her flushed face that only grew in intensity at the second reference of the name.

Backed into a corner and with no means of staging a witty reply, all Blake could say was, "Shut up."

"Nah," Yang drawled. "Admit it, you like the name." To further press her point, she tightened the hold she had on Blake.

Blake rolled her eyes and sighed. "Can we just look for Weiss and Ruby? It's getting late." However, she found that Yang did not relent from the embrace and had started staring at her with an oddly wistful and contemplative expression.

This expression quickly faded away after only a few seconds. "Fine," Yang sighed, notably unhappy that the teasing had to come to an end. The two walked over to the edge of the building to get a better view of the square below. They were initially blinded by the sheer amount of lights that could be found atop and between the many stalls and smaller vendors, on the many lampposts that circled the area, and inside of the large fountain in the center, making the water glitter in hues of the shifting colors. From this angle, the entire crowd could be seen. The size of the group was large enough to make the two question why they had initially thought that going through it would be even a plausible idea. The crowd was more condensed around its exterior but thinned around the center. Regardless, the entire square was congested, making it difficult for the Faunus to spy the other partnership.

Scanning the masses below was proving more difficult than Blake had imagined. She had thought that getting a higher vantage point would give them a greater chance of quickly spotting two girls in dresses of contrasting colors. However, this had not been the case; if anything, the vantage point added a new layer of difficulty in having to process more information at one time. Blake felt as though she must have overlooked the duo more than once by now, causing her subsequent glances over the crowd to become more hurried and frustrated. It was only when Yang nudged her with her elbow and pointed to a part of the crowd that Blake was able to see what she had missed.

There was a small opening in the crowd that was just relatively large enough that Blake had to ask herself how she had missed it. The crowd didn't dare enter this circle for what was in the center of it. A girl in a white dress had her hands on her hips as she slightly leaned forward towards a girl dressed in black. With attention now focused on this sight, a loud, shrill voice could be heard coming from the girl in white as she seemingly scolded the cowering girl who stood opposite herself. Between the penetrating reprimanding and the outlandishly red cloak, the couple on the roof knew that they had found Ruby and Weiss.

Now the only question was how to get to them. This question was raised by Yang when she asked, "Now how are we supposed to get to them?"

When Blake looked over, she found the light of the city square glittering off of the lavender irises of her girlfriend. She smiled at the sight, barely able to keep herself from losing herself to blissful inactivity. "I remember where they are. Let's climb down and we can head over to them."

Yang frowned. "How are you going to get your weapon down then?" Her logic, as it seemed, was that if the two were to climb down the same way they came up, there wouldn't be any way to retrieve Gambol Shroud due to it being lodged into the roof and neither of them having the ability to find enough leverage to dislodge it.

"I have an idea," Blake stated as she moved to peer over the other side of the building and into the alley. Satisfied with whatever it was she saw, she turned back to Yang with the same smile etched on her face. "You can climb down. I'll meet you down there." She looked to her partner who had become silhouetted by the light from the square and was surrounded by a halo of yellow-orange sunlight that caused the outline of her form to glow.

"Are you sure?" Blake nodded. "Well," she began, seemingly willing herself to leave, "I guess I'll see you down there." Her eyes didn't want to leave Blake as she moved to the grappling hook and grabbed the ribbon.

It looked like she was waiting for something since she had grabbed the ribbon and hadn't made a move to climb down it. For some reason—be it genuine care or newfound courtesy—Blake found herself telling her, "Be careful." At this, Yang grinned widely and jumped away from the building.

Blake rushed over to the edge of the building, unable to say anything as she knelt to look over into the alleyway. The quick, reckless action horrified her at first, but upon further inspection, it proved to be a very Yang thing to do. She sighed in both relief and frustration as she watched Yang rappel down the building. She continued to jump down the side of the building, letting a few more feet of the ribbon pass by each time. Every jump caused the faint rustling of the plastic bag against the wind. In a flourishing leap, Yang descended the final story and landed with her hands on her hips in a proud, triumphant pose. The grin that she held from before remained on her face as she looked up to the amber eyes that flashed in the darkness. Blake groaned. She felt as though she in some way incited this response from her warning to take care. "I told you to be careful!" she called down.

"I was!" she exclaimed. "I'm fine, aren't I?"

"No, you're reckless." Blake muttered this to herself as she prepared to descend the building. She dislodged Gambol Shroud with some effort, coiled the ribbon back around her forearm, and placed the weapon on her back before she took a few steps away from the edge of the building. She heard Yang call up to ask where she was going now that she was out of her vision. This was answered by Blake taking a running start towards the edge of the building before leaping as far as she could away from it.

Blake could not verbally reply due to the concentration required for the planned maneuver. What was to happen was Blake would jump from the building and utilize her Semblance to decelerate her descent. After quickly plotted out her points in which she would materialize solid shadows, she began to move. What resulted was her jumping from one shadow to the next, each being a sizable distance away from the others as to not increase the total time of the descent yet close enough so that there would be no way of causing injury to herself. After a total of eight jumps, Blake landed casually on the concrete of the backstreet. She held a straight face and controlled her breathing so that she would not seem the least bit exhausted as she moved over to where Yang was. The blonde was applauding her as she neared and told her, "I'd give it a six-point-five. Ten for the landing, but six-point-five overall."

"That's all?" Blake smirked as she moved past her girlfriend.

Taking the hint that Blake intended on finding their teammates now, Yang followed as she talked. "I mean, it looked cool and you made it look great," she winked, causing an eye roll, "but I don't think you were careful enough." This last part was said mockingly, causing the raven-haired girl to give her a flat look.

"It was either jump off of the building or lose Gambol Shroud. I think I made the better choice." Looking back on the action, perhaps it had been somewhat excessive. There had been the building's staircase that Yang had seemingly forgotten about—Blake made it a point not to mention this. Some part of her wanted to outdo the stunt that her girlfriend pulled. Nevertheless, the sentiments Yang was showing now were very much welcome. It didn't feel as though it had taken as long to get back to the main thoroughfare than it had coming from it to the alley. The two had found their way back into the midst of the general population, amongst the light of the street and the enthusiasm of the crowd.

"Then what was all that about telling me to be careful, huh?" She moved in front of Blake, choosing to blaze a trail through the crowd of the street while walking backwards. "What you did didn't look careful to me."

Blake couldn't help but watch behind Yang since the girl didn't seem to be looking where she was going. "I knew what I was doing. You've even seen me use my Semblance before. What's making you so concerned now?"

Without having to glance behind herself, Yang was able to dexterously sidestep an inattentive passerby while keeping her regular carefree stride. "Well, you're not just my partner now, you're my girlfriend—Sorry!" She cut herself off momentarily, the reason for which Blake was unaware of until Yang spoke again at a marginally quieter volume. "You're my girlfriend too and it just made me worried seeing you jump from that building."

Blake frowned. "How is that different from what you did? I was worried too."

She scratched her neck sheepishly. "I had a rope to rappel down with?" Though it was intended to be a statement, the lack of conviction behind it caused it to sound like a question. "Look, I'm sorry, Blake. I probably should have told you first; I wasn't thinking."

Sighing, Blake rubbed the bridge of her nose. Yang sounded sincerely apologetic, but the backpedaling almost gave the bow-wearing girl the wrong impression. "Yang, it's all right. I'm sorry too. Just—" She sighed again, this time looking up to meet Yang's gaze. "Just promise that you'll warn me before doing something like that again?"

Yang returned with a smile. "Sure; if you promise me the same thing."

"I think I can handle that." This made Yang's smile grow wider for a moment before she turned to walk forwards again, facing the impending, impenetrable crowd. The size of the mass had not diminished—in fact, the crowd seemed to have grown larger since the two last stood on the precipice of the square. Blake made an attempt to once again find an entrance into the crowd but found none. "Now, how are we going to—"

"Excuse me! Coming through! Out of the way!" Yang hadn't slowed her stride as she neared the crowd and instead chose to barrel through. There were a few disgruntled comments made, but other than that, there was nothing keeping the blonde from breaking through. Seeing this, Blake followed closely behind, finding that the berth that was made by Yang's intrusion large enough to separate herself from the rest of the crowd. "Hey!" she called back. "Where are they? I thought we'd have found them by now."

"Head right!" Blake had to shout back in order to overcome the sound coming from those around them; however, she felt as though her voice didn't carry well when she yelled and was beginning to ready herself for another shout before Yang began veering right. As the sea of humanity parted, a shrill voice was becoming more and more clearer, indicating to the two girls that their destination was almost in sight. Nothing pertaining to where Ruby and Weiss were seemed to have changed from when Blake watched the crowd from above; the two still stood in an open area in the center of a large group of people. The closer Blake and Yang got to this open area, the more willing people became to back away.

Weiss had been shouting at Ruby for a reason unknown to either Blake or Yang. What is known is that Yang walked into the center of the circle and quickly led both girls out of the clearing and away from the eyes of onlookers. Blake chose to skirt around the outside of the crowd, moving so that she met the three on the other side. No words were exchanged between any of them nor had there been any reactionary facial expressions aside from those Weiss gave Ruby. Yang continued her brash warnings to the impeding onlookers as she forged a way out of the crowd and onto another branching promenade. As soon as they were out of the sea of people, Yang brought all of them to a halt and turned to look at her teammates. "All right? Who's up for dinner?"

"What is wrong with you, Yang?" Weiss all but screamed. "You barged in and interrupted our conversation. Do you have any manners at all?"

"That didn't look like a conversation from where we were standing," Blake offered. From where Blake now stood, she could see that Weiss' normally pale face had grown abnormally red, presumably due to frustration and subsequent lack of oxygen from venting this frustration. It seemed to only turn further scarlet at her words.

Weiss huffed and turned away from the rest of the team, crossing her arms. When Blake turned to look at her partner, she found her with a hand on Ruby's shoulder. The team leader hung her head in what looked to be shame while her sister attempted to pacify her. She heard the blonde ask, "Ruby? Is there anywhere you want to go eat?" A quick shake of the head was the response. Yang's eyes drooped for a moment before she looked at her sister with a hopeful smile. "Is everything all right, sis?"

"Ye-Yeah, I'm fine." Her voice was weak, but it seemed as though a façade of hopeful happiness was being formed and was making its way through to her features.

Due in large to Blake's heightened sense of hearing, she could hear what Yang asked her sister when she moved closer in an attempt to speak confidentially. "Do we need to go home? We can order take-out from some place if we need to."

Blake did not need a heightened sense of hearing to hear how Ruby responded. "No, I didn't mean it like that! I'm fine, really!" Her timid demeanor had vanished and was replaced with her regular personality, albeit a slightly more panicked version of it. "I meant that I don't care where we go." Blake from afar and Yang from nearby gave the girl a critical look before they looked at each other, wondering the same thing. Their thoughts, however, were interrupted by Ruby's insistence of "I promise! Yang, I'm all right. I just think that…umm…I just think that you and Blake should pick where we go!"

The suggestion was blatantly a means of covering something up; however, the two would humor the girl for the time being. Yang looked to Blake, giving her a look that asked a question separate from what she actually said. "Blake, do you have any place in mind?"

Blake took this look as Yang asking whether or not there was something serious going on between Ruby and Weiss. To answer the unspoken question, Blake dismissively shrugged before looking at Weiss. The heiress still looked away from the group. Blake figured that she didn't care where they went. "You've lived here before. Why don't you decide?"

Yang looked to both Ruby and Weiss before she smirked. "Okay, I think I have an idea."

A groan came from Weiss. "I don't like the way you said that."

"Is there anything you _do_ like about me?" Weiss didn't have time to respond before Yang amended her own question. "Besides my sister?" Blake had to cough to conceal a laugh that had snuck its way out while Ruby sent a glare at the blonde. However, this glare paled in comparison to the ferocity evident in the one Weiss sent. Fortunately for Yang, glaring was all the heiress could do at the moment, words having escaped her at the teasing. "If anybody has a problem with me picking where we eat, speak now or forever hold your peace." The glares from the two girls only intensified but neither voiced their opinions. "That settles it then. Come along, little ones! We're off to find some dinner."

As soon as she was sure that both Ruby and Weiss were following Yang as she marched off towards an undisclosed destination, Blake began to move. She quickly caught up to her ebullient girlfriend, overtaking the disgruntled pace of the other partnership easily. Yang smiled at her expectantly. "What are you planning?" Blake asked, genuinely curious and not at all worried about possible repercussions of whatever machinations the blonde had in store for the others.

"Nothing at all!" Yang singsonged. This was followed by the girl moving closer to Blake and placing an arm around her. While the gesture normally would have been an act of affection, this instance proved Yang to have ulterior motives. Now that she was closer, her voice lowered to a volume not audible from where Ruby and Weiss walked. "There's totally something going on between those two and I plan on finding out what it is."

"Isn't that an invasion of privacy?"

Yang tightened the hold she had on Blake. "Hasn't stopped me before." She loosened the hold. "Now you're going to help me like the wonderful, beautiful girlfriend you are and get some information out of those two."

"As fun as that sounds," she disengaged herself from the hold, "I think I'll pass."

"What?" Yang cried. "C'mon, Blake! Help me out here!"

Instead of returning to the sideways hug, Blake found Yang's hand and intertwined their fingers. "Yang, I can't do that; it wouldn't feel right. But I'm not going to stop you from trying to figure this out."Yang's frown lifted into a slight smile. Unfortunately, it was not a full smile and Blake wanted to rectify that. "I won't completely rule out helping you. If I become interested, then I'll help; but as it stands, I can't do it."

Yang's smile broadened, if only a little. "I guess that makes sense." She sighed. Seeing that she still wasn't cheered up, Blake decided to take the hand she had wrapped in hers and put it over her own shoulder, finding her way back into a sideways hug. A small, short laugh came from Yang. "Thanks, kitten. I won't let you down." Blake's bow twitched irritably, but before she could respond, Yang said, "Sorry, I can't stop it; it wouldn't feel right." Blake sighed while Yang laughed.

Down the path the two walked, followed by their disgruntled red and white compatriots. Because the thoroughfare was immediately different from the one she and Yang were on before, Blake could not fathom where they were headed, choosing instead to walk closely by her girlfriend's side. She trusted the warm figure to know where she was going so she resigned to admire the warmth of the sun as the red star in the distance began its descent into the horizon. Even with the crowd around her, Blake found a peaceful solitude under Yang's arm to the point where she couldn't much mind her surroundings as she lost herself in the calmness of the setting.

* * *

The Kingdom of Vale's sky burned orange due to the setting star that had slowed to a crawl. The night life now came in full force with the shopping crowd having dispersed and given way to those that searched for dinner. Four of such people stood outside of "Flaherty's Bar &amp; Grill," a slightly more elegant chain restaurant than other competitors. This, as Yang had explained, had been her dining choice. Ruby was immediately enthusiastic about the restaurant while Blake was, as she stated, content. Weiss didn't seem openly ready to accept the new locale, but Blake knew she would warm to it, if only slightly and eventually. The four stood outside not to admire the purposefully rustic feel of the building's exterior, but to debate a topic which would not have been a problem had it not been their summer break.

"No!" Ruby yelled. "I'm not hiding Crescent Rose behind a dumpster. That's sick and wrong!" During their time at Beacon, the members of Team RWBY had come to believe that carrying around their weapons at all times (even to meals) was to be considered normal. This was not the case in everyday society. The problem that faced the four now was what to do with their weapons if they wanted to sit down and eat at a restaurant.

"Well I'm up for whatever suggestions you have!" This same conversation had been going on for a while now, as evidenced by Yang's irritation. The conversation had mainly been a back and forth between Yang and her sister with a few instances where Blake would interject to keep Yang from doing something she would regret. Weiss, up until this point, had been quiet for the most part with the exception of a few annoyed sighs or groans.

However, these passive-aggressive noises could only sate her annoyance for so long. The girl in white walked over to Blake as calmly as she could before unfastening Myrtenaster. "Hold this," she said simply, presenting her sword to the bow-wearing girl. Blake took it and chose not to question the action even when Weiss walked into the crowded lobby of the restaurant. While the sisters had been bickering, the restaurant had been steadily filling up and now it was at the point where Blake thought that they might have to choose a different venue. That is, she believed that it would be nearly impossible for them to get a seat in the restaurant before Weiss returned not a minute after she entered the building. "Would you two cut it out!" she snapped at the sisters, catching their undivided attention in the process. She cleared her throat. "Now, if you would follow me, I've convinced the management to let us have our weapons with us. We also are waiting to be seated right now, so I'd suggest that you two get over whatever it is you're bickering about soon."

The fierce expressions on the faces of Ruby and Yang instantly faded away and were replaced with equally excited and eager faces. They followed closely behind Weiss and Blake as they made their way towards the building. "How did you get them to let us in like this?" Blake asked.

Weiss scoffed. "I'm a Schnee. All I have to do is mention my name and people grovel."

"And you don't have a problem with throwing that much power around for something like this?"

"Hardly." The heiress glanced over her shoulder at the sisters who were now discussing what they wanted to eat. "It was worth it just to get those idiots to shut up for once."

Blake raised an eyebrow at the name she had given the two. Usually, Weiss would resort to calling them "dolts" or something of the kind. "Idiot" was a much harsher word. "Weiss," Blake began, having no intentions about unwittingly aiding Yang in her endeavors, "did something happen between you and Ruby while we were gone?"

"I don't want to talk about it," was all she said before she flung open the door of the restaurant in order to let herself in. Before Blake could react to the door closing on her, she found a gauntleted hand holding it open above her head. She entered and smiled back at Yang who had been holding the door open for her and Ruby.

Blake was in a confined space with a large group of people. The lobby of Flaherty's was packed to the point where Blake felt the need to question if this amount of people was contrary to the whims of the fire marshal that set the maximum occupancy limit. This was one of many questions that ran through the mind of the Faunus so that she may try to distract herself from those around her. She hadn't seen the true size of the crowd before she entered, but now that she was inside and looking at the people, she couldn't move. The dimly lit foyer was made just a little darker by the thought of all of those eyes being focused on her bow. She knew that she was blocking the doorway and there was nothing that she could do about it; she couldn't move to let Ruby pass as she squeezed behind her. People were everywhere; swarming the host's table, clustering on the benches, and even blocking one set of double doors due to their collective mass. Her breath became shallow at the sight.

A warm presence moved up beside her and put a hand on her shoulder. Blake could let her shoulders relax at the touch. "Hey," Yang said, bringing Blake out of her trance. "The table's all set up. Let's get moving." Though there were orders in Yang's suggestion, they were given softly, allowing Blake to comply with a small smile. As she was moved between the groups of people into the dining area, Blake actively tried to regain her composure. It was not until she was amongst the tables and away from the crowd that she was able to breathe again. She looked to Yang who held a more serious expression than she was used to. However, with Blake's gaze trained on her, she smiled. Blake's pace increased and steadied.

She hadn't realized while in her incapacitated state that Ruby and Weiss had already headed off to their table. This table could be considered to be more of a booth and was located in a remote corner of the dining area, a choice no doubt made by Weiss. She and her partner had already seated themselves on one side of the booth, leaving the opposite bench empty for Blake and Yang. As Blake approached, she could tell that the two had begrudgingly sat on the same side, judging by their constant frowns and glares at Yang.

In seeing these two act this way, Blake was able to move efficiently and on her own, now able to forget about the multitudes of people who overcrowded the lobby. She slid her way into the booth, opting to take the seat closest to the window in order to make sure that Yang didn't sit directly across from Weiss. Yang sat down right after her, placing the bag from Game Place in between the two of them. Both took a moment to adjust their posture and acquaint themselves with their new environment. The dim light of the foyer carried over into the dining room, adding to the modern industrial feel of the building. Red bricks and wooden supports made up the walls, contrasting the beige stone exterior of many of the buildings in Vale. This contrast was made apparent to the group by the picture frames on the walls that held photographs of the city's landmarks and sights. A common theme in these pictures was the inclusion of this specific establishment.

The group remained in silence, too preoccupied with their own thoughts to speak to one another. Blake watched the two sitting across from her glare at Yang, still having not yet let go of her jokes. Yang didn't speak, probably too concerned with keeping up her confident visage in spite of the spiteful looks she was being given. Blake alternated between watching the lack of conversation at the table and the pedestrian movements happening on the other side of the window. Because of that small sheet of glass that separated her from the world outside, Blake could safely watch the people of the city walk by without feeling the stress of being unwanted and watched.

A slight shuffling sound coming from the carpet alerted Blake to a presence beside their table. He was a man around their age, probably a little older. The glares on both Ruby and Weiss' faces remained, only now redirected at the newcomer. Yang held an interestingly neutral expression as she looked at the waiter. "How are you ladies doing tonight?" The glares and the neutral expression from the blonde seemed to have not affected the young man in the least.

Instantly, Yang perked up at the customary conversation starter. "We're doing great. How about yourself?" The glares lingered.

He grinned. "I'm just fine. Now what can I start you all off with to drink?" The question seemed to break Ruby's glare as she scoured through the menu in front of her. Weiss was not as easily deterred from her sentiments.

"Water," she said flatly, almost at a level where she was growling at the waiter.

He wrote down the order on a notepad before looking to Ruby. She hummed in contemplation as she quickly scanned the list of drinks. "I think I'll have…umm…" She suddenly brightened up at something on the menu. "I'll have a cookies and cream milkshake." He jotted this down before looking to Yang, a smile now present on his face.

Yang set her menu down, having been gazing at it while the others made their orders. "I'll have a strawberry sunrise with no—Wha—Hey!" She was caught off-guard by an elbow to her side.

"She'll have a water," Blake said calmly, keeping her eyes off of her leering girlfriend. Before the waiter could speak again, she continued. "And I will have an iced tea, unsweetened."

He wrote their orders down. "I'll get your drinks out to you in a minute." And at that, he left, leaving the table's occupants in a wholly volatile state.

"What was that for?" Yang was more confused by the action than anything, but hints of anger could be found seeping their way into her tone.

Without looking up from her perusal of the menu, Blake stated, "As your partner and girlfriend, I'm not going to let you order anything containing alcohol." As if she could see Yang beginning to object, she said, "That's final."

Her statement didn't seem to deter Yang from arguing. "C'mon Blake! We're celebrating!" Nobody at the table looked to be expressly ecstatic about recent events.

Blake closed the menu and set it down. "You're underage." She looked at the blonde. The stern expression she had left nothing needed to be said. It nonverbally communicated all of warning, care, and disappointment. She wasn't necessarily disappointed at her for trying to order a drink unsuitable for her age, but more so Blake was disappointed in her because she saw this request as an attempt on Yang's part to escape from the group. She saw it as Yang's attempt to augment her own experience over the experiences of everyone around her. This rationalization made Blake feel inadequate in a small way, in that she felt Yang wanted to supplement her time with the Faunus with the drink. Blake halted this train of thought and the possibility of it coming to fruition with the denial of her order.

Whether or not Yang could interpret the ideology behind the sentiments of the stare could not be determined. What could be determined however was her willing compliance to Blake's whims after an upset of a few seconds. "Fine," she sighed, "A water was probably would've been better in the first place. Just because we're not at Beacon doesn't mean we don't have to stay in shape." Her previously forlorn demeanor vanished at the newly fabricated grin. Blake knew she was a bit upset over not getting the drink she wanted, but the fact that she was trying to appease Blake made said girl smile. Instead of voicing her thanks and drawing attention to their recent nonverbal conversation, Blake simply leaned against her. Yang leaned back.

A rattling sound from behind told Blake that their drinks would be arriving at any second. True to form, the drinks arrived, being carried by the waiter who was having a difficult time concealing his uncertainty about the hold he had on the tray. He struggled to get out the names of the drinks as he set them down in front of the respective girl who ordered them. As soon as he finished setting the drinks, he regained his confidence and tucked the tray under his arms, an almost overconfident grin forming on his face. "Okay," he began, pulling out his notepad and pen. "Now, what can I get you all?"

There was a period where nobody at the table could speak, being restrained by the tension between them. It was only due to the man's expectant look and Weiss' affinity for efficiency that the silence was broken. "I'll take a Caesar salad."

As the man noted this, Ruby's head spun to look at Weiss. She looked mortified at the order. Without removing her gaze from the girl sitting beside her, Ruby said, "I'll have a cheeseburger and fries."

"I'll take what she's having." Yang smiled.

Blake watched out of the corner of her eye and waited for the man to finish writing everybody else's order down. As soon as she saw him lift his head, she spoke. "I'd like the grilled salmon, please."

The smile he had was perhaps too amiable. In light of recent events, Blake could even see the waiter's smile as being somewhat flirtatious. Though Blake purposefully tried to show disinterest, the waiter didn't seem to understand this. He smiled widely. "Certainly," he said with a wink. Blake did not care for the action and thusly did not react. However, a sudden wave of heat washed over the entire restaurant. People in the other booths and tables of the establishment were visibly confused, looking around and leaning towards others to confidentially complain about the building's heating system. Meanwhile, the girls at the table had their attention immediately trained on Yang. She wasn't angry now, but for the briefest of seconds, she had been. Now she simmered in her annoyed state. The waiter wasn't being affected by the glare now given by the blonde; more so, he was affected by the change in temperature and immediately excused himself from the table to take care of the order and fix the thermostat.

Jealousy was what caused the heat wave. Blake knew this because she had seen the wink, but judging by Weiss' question of "What was that for?", neither she nor Ruby knew why Yang was unable to control her aura. Blake put her hand atop Yang's, hoping that the hold would relieve the annoyed state.

Yang sighed, exchanging her annoyance for exasperation. "I don't wanna talk about it." She crossed her arms on the table and rested her head on them, not relinquishing Blake's hold. Blake found the blonde's thumb tracing a pattern around her knuckles.

"Whatever." Weiss crossed her arms and watched Ruby begin to work on her milkshake. "Just don't burn down the building and I won't care what you do."

A small smirk played across Yang's face. "I'll make sure to keep that in mind, Ms. Forest Fire." Weiss lifted her nose at the statement in a feeble attempt to hide the heat of embarrassment prevalent on her face. Both the reaction and the nickname caused Ruby to laugh, causing her to withdraw from her drink. Yang, meanwhile, set her head back atop her arms . Blake's brows furrowed.

"I forgot," Ruby giggled, "you totally set the forest on fire!"

"Shut up," Weiss snarled. "You got in my way. You should be lucky that you weren't set on fire as well."

"I am lucky! You saved my life!" Weiss barely had a chance to groan before Ruby wrapped her in an impromptu hug. "My hero!" she exclaimed, almost dreamily.

Her face flushed with what seemed to be anger as her scowl grew more prominent. "Ruby," she said in a low, dangerous tone, "get off of me." Blake could tell that the threat held no substance to it, yet the way it was stated seemed to strike some fear into the mind of Ruby.

The team leader let go of Weiss so that she could sit with her back straight and her hands in her lap. "Yes, Weiss." She sat calmly and without complaint. Weiss smirked.

"Whipped." The quip from the blonde could barely be heard through her barricade of arms. She lifted her head to rest her chin on her topmost forearm so that she could look at Weiss. She didn't say anything, merely choosing go look at the heiress. This lasting stare seemed to bore into Weiss in an irritatingly passive way to the point where the heiress was becoming visibly agitated. Blake had to assume that this was the beginning of Yang's plan.

Seconds passed and Weiss grew more and more annoyed. The cold glower coming from the heiress clashed with the abnormally vacant stare from the blonde. Blake observed the two in their silent battle—watched as Yang showed no signs of giving in and watched as Weiss looked to be slowly losing. Finally, Weiss lost. "What?" she snapped. Yang didn't so much as flinch at the response, choosing not to answer and continue her stare. Blake could see Weiss' jaw tighten as she ground her teeth. "What is it?" she asked again, this time acting relatively calmer than she had when she asked her previous question. Blake would have never guessed Yang to have the silent treatment at her arsenal for teasing others; however, she was wielding the skill well. Weiss sighed, conceding defeat. "What do you want, Yang?"

With her demeanor kept uncharacteristically aloof, Yang asked, "What were you yelling at my sister about in front of all those people?"

Weiss ground her teeth again. "I don't think that's any of your business." She now assumed a compliant and fearful posture, similar to the one that Ruby had.

Yang's eyebrows raised as she hummed an introspective noise. "I think it is my business. First of all, she's my sister." Yang's look hadn't changed and yet Weiss fidgeted. "Second, she's my teammate. I want to know what's going on." Now it was Weiss' turn to remain quiet, though it was not her conscious decision to do so. Yang had kept a neutral visage during her silence. Weiss, however, shifted between looking scared and unsure. "Weiss, I'm not mad at you and I won't be if you tell me what happened. But if you don't tell me soon, then I will be mad."

Weiss looked back to the blonde with an indignantly furious expression, face glowing bright red and glaring at Yang for only a second before crossing her arms and turning her head to the wall beside her. "Fine," she huffed. However, this was not followed by any explanation.

"Well?" Yang asked expectantly.

There was a low, growling noise that came from Weiss as she looked down at the table, not meeting the eyes of anyone else in the group. Ruby made an attempt to look like she was focused on her milkshake, but in reality, she watched Weiss out of the corner of her eye. Weiss mumbled something almost inaudible and Ruby suddenly became much more interested in the drink. Blake could see a smirk appear on Yang's face for a moment before it was concealed behind the odd mask of stoicism. Her head raised from its resting place of her arms and moved over the table, closer to Weiss. "What'd you say?" The question was of genuine intrigue rather than one intended to be used to gloat over newly acquired information.

The heiress' glare returned in full force with her face being a shade of red never before seen on her icy visage. However, this glare wasn't sent towards Yang; rather, it was Blake that received the look. More specifically, Weiss looked between Blake's eyes and her bow. The heiress did not have the courage to say it again, so she wanted Blake to repeat it. Blake had been able to hear what Weiss mumbled and was confused as to why she couldn't repeat it. Nonetheless, between Weiss' pleading glare and the questioning gaze of Yang now directed at her, Blake was unable to ignore the request. "She said Ruby tried to hold her hand."

Everybody at the table—with the exception of Blake—reacted quickly to the statement. Ruby stared wide-eyed at Blake before pulling her cloak's hood over her head and placing her face on the table. Weiss went back to looking at the table's edge closest to her. Yang's attention jumped between Ruby and Weiss, her calm expression replaced by apparent confusion. "Is that it?" She almost sounded offended. The act of Weiss looking further down in embarrassment gave Yang her answer, causing the blonde to burst out laughing. Blake smirked while Ruby and Weiss looked up to the guffawing girl. Her head had come to rest in her arms again, this time in an attempt to mute her laughter that had drawn the attention of the other patrons of the restaurant.

"You!" She couldn't get the rest of her exclamation out before she laughed herself into incoherency. She was crying now, causing Blake to smile slightly. The admission of Weiss, albeit embarrassing to her, was a fairly harmless revelation that Blake found humorous. However, what she found even more humorous was the fact that Yang's façade had broken and her plan had worked. "That's it?" she cried, causing Weiss to glare at her. She looked to Ruby. "You held her hand?" She fell into another bout of laughter when Ruby pulled her hood tighter over her head. "Oh my God," she wheezed, "you two are perfect for each other!"

It was hard for Blake to not laugh, but she persevered. After the events of the day, the concept of holding hands had become commonplace and to be expected, yet the occurrence seemed to be anything but to the heiress. Unfortunately for her, Yang was not in a state of mind where she could respect the relative awkwardness of the action and thusly laughed at her for it. Blake placed a hand on the shoulder blanketed in blonde hair and looked at Weiss. "I'm sorry, Weiss." To emphasize what she was sorry about, she tilted her head towards her partner. At this, Weiss relaxed but Blake continued. "However, what you did to Ruby was wrong. You yelled at her in front of an audience because she tried to hold your hand. That might have been a little much." The blush on Weiss' face faded away while she frowned rather than scowled. "I think she deserves an apology."

Oppositional pride made itself evident. "But she tried to touch me in front of all of those people." Blake hardened her grip on Yang's shoulder, stifling the giggles coming from the blonde. "What if someone saw? I could have lost credibility; not only here but around the kingdom. I have values to uphold—values of the Schnee family and the Schnee Dust Company. I can't be seen holding anyone's hands, much less…" She paused and brought her voice down to a level that it could almost be considered a whisper. "Another girl."

"Weiss," Blake pleaded, "you're not the only one who was affected. How do you think Ruby felt when you yelled at her in front of all of those people?" Weiss' eyes widened for a moment before she shut them, seemingly trying to separate herself from the conversation. "You're also not the only one with a reputation to uphold. Ruby's lived here for most of her life. How do you think the people here reacted when they saw her being yelled at? Maybe not all of the people in the crowd knew her, but rumors spread quickly." Though Weiss' eyes were still closed, she managed to make it look as though they closed tighter, causing her face to scrunch in pain. "A simple slap on the wrist would have sufficed."

Yang lifted her head from her arms again, watching Weiss expectantly alongside Blake. The pained expression on the heiress' face did not alter and she showed no signs of giving in. Neither of the two spectators noticed the fourth member of the team and how she reacted. "Weiss," they heard her say, causing all three other girls' attentions to turn on her. "Don't worry about it. Nobody will remember it anyway. And if they do, I don't care. That, and I don't really feel bad about what you said anymore. So, no harm done!" She smiled at Blake. "Thanks," she said simply. Blake smiled back and nodded, giving a nonverbal "You're welcome."

Weiss' pained expression disappeared as she rubbed the bridge of nose. "Ruby," she sighed, choosing her words carefully. Blake expected some sort of sincere apology and reconciliation. However, all Weiss said was, "You dunce." The three other girls smiled. Blake was content with this sort of response; it meant that Weiss wasn't going to feel too much compunction for what she had done and was not going to remain on the subject. It also meant Weiss was back to normal and, on some level, had come to terms with the situation.

With Yang's plan having been completed and the team having calmed down for the most part, a small period of peace occurred at the table. That is, it could only occur when it was only those four at the table. Muted, rhythmic sounds came from behind Blake, standing out from the droning conversation of the patrons. Blake could hear it pretty early on, but she was surprised to find Yang's shoulder and hair heating up before she heard the sounds. It was the waiter; she could smell the food. Blake pulled on Yang's shoulder to get her attention. She gave the blonde a warning look which was returned with an eye-roll.

A stand was set before their table and the tray placed atop it. The smiling waiter that Yang despised stood there, smiling. With his same happy and confident expression, he named off the dishes as he served them to their respective recipients. The only ones at the table who thanked him were Ruby and Blake. Even with Blake's previous warning, Yang sent a heated glare in the most literal of senses at the back of the waiter's head. Blake had to admit, the protectiveness was sweet even if it might have been a bit excessive.

As soon as the waiter was gone from the immediate area, the four began to eat. Conversation transitioned away from Ruby and Weiss' incident in the square to how Blake and Yang's day went. This sparked a fervor in the exuberant girl who quickly and idealistically regaled the two on their adventures in the bookstore and the game shop. Blake was thankful that she replaced the part of her overreacting to her new title of girlfriend with a tale of Blake dragging a bored Yang through the aisles for hours on end. Fortunately, all that Ruby took away from the two stories was the fact that Yang bought a video game. The excitement radiating off of the two caused Blake to naturally smile and Weiss' countenance to soften.

From time to time, Weiss could be seen correcting Ruby's table manners, not with openly severe warnings or passive-aggressive remarks, but with relatively amicable teachings, sometimes even by example. From Blake's perspective, the incursions were barely noticeable and would be otherwise overlooked. She figured that this was Weiss' way of apologizing.

Blake looked to the young woman sitting beside her. Seeing her bright smile and the positive effect she was having on Ruby and Weiss brought only one thought to Blake's mind: she was lucky—more so than she originally thought she would be when she could only imagine what a relationship between herself and Yang would be like. She was able to turn Ruby's fear and trepidation into laughter and mirth as well as Weiss' outright anger into her regular calm annoyance all due to a purchase she had made not a few hours earlier. On top of that, she was able to soothe Blake back into a logical state of mind after her unexpected outburst. Blake smiled, not at the joke Yang was now telling, but at her own internal joke and observation. Yang had saved the day and Blake was proud—could be proud because Yang had said "Yes" and saved her day.

* * *

The starry night sky burned at the edges, the last rays of the set sun casting an orange glow on the horizon of the otherwise dark violet atmosphere. Shadowy trees stood still on the edge of the world while fence posts and the occasional building zoomed by Blake's vision. She quietly watched the scene unfold before her, choosing to idly rest her head against the warm shoulder of her girlfriend. Time had become indefinable, feeling as though it was dragging with the lack of action or conversation and feeling as though it was flying by with the distance they covered. In her zoned-out state, she could only partially feel Yang's fingers rubbing against her own. She had to make a decision whether to suppress a smile or to suppress a yawn. In the end, she chose to smile. She was tired and could tell the others were as well, yet she didn't want to be the one to draw attention to the fact.

Weiss and Ruby weren't ignoring each other as much as they were comfortably sitting near each other without arguing or even talking. Weiss had an almost imperceptibly disgusted scowl that only worsened whenever her eyes fell upon Ruby. Blake had seen that sort of scowl before and knew that it was seldom exacerbated by an external conflict. Ruby, however, had no such problem, staring past Blake and Yang at the bright white moon on the opposite horizon with a reminiscent smile.

It was late now and the group was only a small distance away from the sisters' residence. It had been a long day with the intermittent periods of distress coupled with the overall elation caused by the newly formed relationship and the events that spawned from it. The emotional rollercoaster of happiness and pain hadn't relented for even a moment, leaving the Faunus exhausted but nevertheless content. She absentmindedly squeezed Yang's hand, causing the blonde to close the miniscule distance left between them as they sat. Blake rested her head against the shoulder of the warm figure as she anticipated the moment she could return to her bed and return to a familiar pace that she had found comfort in during her time at Beacon. To end the day with but a single chapter of a book—it didn't matter which at this point—would solidify this day as being one of the best days Blake had ever experienced. There was a distinct possibility that this day could not have been one of the best days, but perhaps _the_ definitive best day she had ever had the pleasure of having.

The thought of ending the day with her previous routine brought forth a frightening thought. The plan reminded her that the final result would be the end of the day. Be it childlike sentimentality or a nagging need to spend more time with Yang, Blake did not want to see the day end. She leaned closer against Yang in a futile attempt to slow down time. She knew it was irrational but she didn't care. The day was perfect and she had slept in; it could last a bit longer.

Unfortunately, she felt the transition from the smooth pavement of the road to the rough dirt of the path up to the house with the vibrations of the car. This shook her from her dazed state and caused her to unwittingly frown. However, the tightening of the hug that Yang held her in reversed this effect. She looked to find Yang smiling down at her, her tiredness only just noticeable. Blake did her best to give the blonde a smile that told her that she was doing a good job in staying awake before watching the shadow of the house come into view from the opposite window.

The limousine rolled to a stop and almost immediately, the driver's door could be heard opening. The four sat in fatigued silence as they simply listened to the footsteps on gravel that traveled to Ruby and Weiss' door. Before the driver could open the door, the lights inside of the cabin dimmed due to the car apparently being turned off. For a moment, the group was shrouded in shadows, only able to make out the person sitting beside them. Moonlight flooded the interior of the vehicle as the door opened. However, Blake didn't need this illumination to know that Yang had kept her gaze trained on her. The stare stayed that way even as Weiss and Ruby exited and made their way up to the house.

Yang wouldn't let go and Blake didn't want to move. Unfortunately for the both of them, the thought of the other becoming uncomfortable due to the lack of movement for an extended period of time forced the two to move on their own accords. Blake exited first and stopped just beside the door of the car to wait for Yang. As soon as the blonde emerged, Blake found her hand captured in a warm embrace. Before she could be dragged off towards the house, she gave the driver a small smile and short bow before she allowed herself to be whisked away. Just as they turned to head towards the house, Blake could see the front door closing and a red cloak only just making it inside. Seeing this, Yang slowed her pace and began looking over her shoulder at the limousine every few seconds. Even with the curious glances behind her, the blonde was able to take the steps up to the porch two at a time—an amount still manageable for a weary Blake.

The crushing sound of gravel from behind caused Yang to stop completely as she watched the car drive away. As soon as it was well on its way down the driveway, she turned to Blake who stared bemusedly at her. "Now that we're alone," she drawled, causing the Faunus to roll her eyes at what she thought was going to be a joke. "And now that you've walked me up to my front door…" She let her sentence trail off, allowing Blake to realize that Yang on some level wasn't joking. Before Yang could say anything more, Blake wrapped her in a hug, albeit one that wasn't purely intended to be affectionate but more so preemptive than anything else. Even if the hug was to cut Yang off from making any more suggestions that Blake had only experienced in some of her books or in a few movies, it didn't mean she couldn't enjoy the warm presence before her. Yang hugged back and chuckled into Blake's neck. "So, I'm guessing a kiss is out of the question?"

"It's only been a day, Yang. Give it time." Another reason why she chose to hug Yang was to hide the inevitable blush that would come to her face whenever Yang chose to mention her plan.

"Fine," she sighed in a faux exasperated tone.

At this, the two parted, if only so that they could gaze into each other's eyes. Having had enough time to compose herself and collect her thoughts within the hold, Blake found herself somewhat apologetic for not being willing to seal their first date with a kiss. "I had fun today." she smiled as she watched the corners of Yang's lips rise to one of her own. "Thanks for inviting me to stay with you and Ruby this summer. I don't think I've had a chance to say that since I've arrived, but I feel like it would be right to say it now. Thank you, Yang, for everything." There were a few moments' pause with nothing happened between the two. Blake had tried to muster the courage to kiss Yang, but she couldn't do it, leaving the two standing in a comfortably awkward silence.

That is, it was silent until Yang caught on to Blake's trepidation. Quickly, she began, "Don't mention it. I should be thanking you for coming. If you stayed at Beacon, I don't know what I would have done besides tease Ruby and the princess by myself. Thanks for being my partner-in-crime." Blake shook her head, trying and failing to suppress a small laugh. "And Blake?" This brought her attention back to the lilac eyes before her. "Thanks for asking me." Yang pulled her into a crushingly tight hug. Blake could tolerate it; she figured it was Yang's way of compensating for her hesitation.

Feeling empowered and happy from the contact, Blake attempted to hug back as hard as she could. It was a trivial effort for Yang did not so much as flinch at the exerted pressure, but it felt right. The two stood like this for a few moments, basking in the glow of the moon and the warmth of one another. It wasn't until new lights, not of the sky or the city on the horizon, but of the house's porch, turned on suddenly. This broke up the embrace, causing Blake to look down at her hands folded in front of her and Yang to rub the back of her neck sheepishly. "So, uh, I guess we go inside now?" Yang laughed nervously as she spoke. "I've never really dated someone who shared the same house as me."

Blake would have found the fact that she wasn't Yang's first date to be off-putting had she not found her bumbling expression cute. She shook her head, smiling before she grabbed a hold of Yang's wrist. "Come on," she said as she opened the door and pulled the blonde through.

"That sounded weird, didn't it?" Yang couldn't keep up with Blake's pace, having to awkwardly scrutinize her own statements in an attempt to sound at least marginally composed. "I mean, it's not really normal for someone to date someone who's in the same house as them—not that I don't like it. It just isn't really something people usually do. And I'm not saying that I've dated a lot of people—I promise!"

"Yang." Blake had stopped, leaving the two standing in the hall between their rooms. She doubted that the blonde realized how far they had travelled as she gave her excuses. She thought the action was funny if not admirable. However, she knew that the blonde's fatigue played a large factor in the apologies. "It's all right," she said softly. "None of this is really 'normal,' so why draw attention to it? Saying the situation is weird is the only thing that could make it weird between us."

Yang stared at her for a moment, brows furrowed at the observation. "Blake, it's late. I heard what you said but didn't understand a word of it. Can we hold off on the smart stuff until tomorrow?"

Blake smiled. "Sure." She chose to give her a quick hug and said, "Have a good night."

This action turned out to be a mistake as Yang returned the hug fiercely. "But I'm not tired," she whined. Blake tried to escape from the grasp, but much to her dismay, Yang was stronger. "I just wanna spend more time with you. Please?"

She sounded like a child, but Blake had to admit, the affection was having a positive effect on her. "You invited me to spend the summer with you, remember?" Though her voice was muffled by the jacket which her face had been buried in, she felt Yang tense for a moment before relaxing and releasing her hold.

"Fine," she sighed. "Just promise you'll be here in the morning." This was an odd request, but Blake attributed it to the delirium of Yang's lack of sleep.

Still, she smiled. "Don't worry, I will. Have a good night."

Yang hugged tighter for a moment as she returned, "Good night, kitten." After saying this, she broke away from the embrace and gave Blake a sad and tired look. Blake gave her a soft smile back and, due to her not knowing how to proceed any less awkwardly, bowed her head slightly before turning to her room. Yang didn't seem too distressed by this as she ambled into her own room, letting momentum close her door as she pushed it shut.

As soon as Blake was in her room, she shut the door and leaned against it, letting out a relieved sigh. What a day it had been. Not only did she garner the courage to ask Yang out, she had said "yes." It had been perfect—something out of a romance novel. Yang had whisked her away to a secluded spot in the middle of a forest, let herself become unguarded and vulnerable, and had accepted Blake's offer. It had been followed up by her first official date, and, despite all of the pain of memories and arguments between group members, it had gone perfectly. To say that she felt accomplished would be an understatement; she felt elated and confident and hopeful and the only way she could express this was through the reflective sigh as she leaned against the door.

As soon as she was sure that she was grounded in reality and not a victim of some cruel, hyper-realistic dream, she moved towards her bed, intent on changing into her pajamas and finishing out the day with a chapter of a novel. She figured that if the day had already been perfect, she should end the day on a high note rather than on the awkward farewell she had given Yang. She wasn't excited about the end of the day that had been so good to her, but she understood it was an inevitability and thusly resigned to relaxing and getting back into her regular routine.

* * *

Whether it was the length of the chapter or her unfocused mindset, Blake was unable to get through the section of the novel as quickly as she would have liked. She had lost interest in the content, a greater story relentlessly replaying in her mind. That is why, when there was a soft rapping at the door, Blake was not surprised too much. If anything, the novel had woken her up again, returning her not to the routine of reading, but back to her nocturnal habits. Looking at the clock, she knew that it was too late to audibly permit entry. She had closed her book and readied herself to stand when the clicking noise of the doorknob ceased the action.

She had expected Yang. Rather, she hoped that it would have been Yang, if only to spend a few more seconds with her. However, it was Ruby who entered, dressed in her pajamas and adorning an expression that was more serious than Blake had ever seen on the girl. "I'm sorry if I'm interrupting," she said, strangely diplomatic for regular personality.

"Not at all." Blake set the book to her side and rested her hands atop her blanketed lap. ""What are you doing up so late?"

Ruby rubbed the back of her neck, losing her stoic expression for a second as she laughed sheepishly. "Well, Weiss sort of kicked me out so she could change."

"She kicked you out of your own room?"

Ruby rolled her eyes. "_Weiss_ kicked me out of my room. I'm not going to argue with her if it comes between her and her clothes."

Blake gave a small laugh. "Fair enough; that's as good a reason as any." She let silence descend on the both of them as they calmed. She could guess that from the serious demeanor Ruby had held when she entered that the team leader had something she needed to speak to her about. When she saw that Ruby had recomposed herself, she asked, "Is there something you needed?"

The young girl closed her eyes and took a deep breath before looking Blake in the eyes. "Actually, there's something I need to talk to you about. It's about you and my sister." Blake was surprised; this was turning out to be one of a few instances where Ruby's intermittent maturity showed through. Blake sat back against her pillows and regarded the girl before her. "Blake, I trust you as a teammate and a friend and everything, but there's something I need to be sure of. I need you to promise me something."

"Sure; what do you need?" Normally, the idea of accepting an agreement before knowing the conditions went against Blake's better judgment. However, between the subject of her new relationship and the cautious sincerity in Ruby's tone, it was hard not for her to accept.

"I need you to promise me that you won't hurt my sister. She's the only one I have left to really call family and if something happened to her, I don't know what I'd do. I don't mean don't hurt her physically; we're all training to be huntresses, it's probably going to happen anyways. I need you to promise me that you won't break her heart. I can tell you mean a lot to her and that she means a lot to you, but she's been through too many bad experiences and I don't want it to happen again." Ruby gave Blake a pleading look, silently asking the Faunus to accept. "Can you promise me that?"

The plea raised more questions than it should have. Nevertheless, Blake made it a point to remember some of the points made in the explanation and learn more about them at a later date. For now, she scanned the girl before her. Her posture was straight and her eyes were held a conviction that rarely could be seen on someone who wasn't truly sympathetic. She instinctually wanted to say yes, but the overly logical, often remorseful part of her mind warned against this quick response.

Whether or not this promise would be made was pivotal for both girls. Blake saw this question not only as caring protectiveness on the part of one sister for another, but as an agreement that could have lasting effects. She saw this as Ruby asking whether or not she would commit herself to Yang, to have the relationship last and to have it not be a throwaway experience. Ruby was asking if Blake was willing to take a leap of faith into the unpredictable depth of a relationship. Thoughts of her time in the White Fang clouded her mind, reminding her of the actions she had taken against humans and told her that this sort of relationship would never work out. These thoughts were swept to the side with the experiences of the day. Visions of Yang's smile, humor, and touch made the decision all the easier.

"Ruby, I promise you that I will take care of your sister. As both her partner and her girlfriend, I will do my best to keep her out of harm's way. There's no need to worry. She has my back and I've got hers." Blake finished this with a smile, proud at her own words. Ruby let out a large sigh of relief, presumably due to her being able to be her regular self again, before returning with a warm smile of her own. "Yang's pretty lucky to have you as a sister. I've never seen you so protective before."

The grateful, sentimental demeanor she held vanished as she placed her hands on her hips in a triumphant pose. "Yeah, I am pretty great, aren't I?"

Blake's bow twitched. "Yeah, pretty great at making Weiss angry."

Ruby looked as though she was about to question this quip until the two could hear a door opening and Weiss yelling throughout the house, "Ruby! Where are you, you dolt? It's late and you need to go to sleep!" Blake smirked as Ruby's eyes widened in fear. The muted and slurred "Shut up" from Yang's room caused Blake to giggle unabashedly.

Ruby nervously chuckled. "Duty calls. 'Night."

"Good night, Ruby." Blake waited until Ruby had left her room and closed the door to turn off the light on her nightstand. She figured that her thoughts were too preoccupied to truly focus on her novel, so she set it aside on the nightstand. Now she was left alone in the darkness, having only her thoughts left to keep her company. The memories of the day and her time with Yang were still fresh in her mind, but the promise took priority over all else. She had agreed to remain by Yang's side and to protect her not only physically, but emotionally as well. She smiled, thinking that she wouldn't have it any other way. Sure, it was a great deal of responsibility entrusted to her, but the fact that she was the one trusted with it made it worthwhile.

She still sat up, her finger having an odd, anxious, tapping movement every few seconds. They trusted her—not only with their lives, but with those precious to them as well. She saw Ruby's permission to date her sister as a defining moment of acceptance amongst the group. Her hand stopped its tapping and made its way up to her head. Not only had they accepted her for being a Faunus, they were more than okay with her new relationship with Yang. She grabbed one end of the silken ribbon. Now Ruby trusted her with the wellbeing of the one individual decisively more important than her weapon. Perhaps she was being slightly too sentimental, but she saw this action as acceptance not only into a team of friends, but into a family. She pulled on the ribbon, letting her Faunus ears breathe in the open air.

She looked at the black fabric. Would she really need it around the others? She set it on top of her book. She decided that she would, in time, stray from using the fabric, but she would slowly introduce the others to the concept of her not wearing the bow. She could only stand the cat jokes so much, so she believed that the only way to keep these at bay was by gradually making her Faunus traits a pedestrian sight rather than a surprising one that could elicit jokes. They had shown her their trust; she figured that it was time to show the team that she trusted them as well.

She gazed blankly at the ceiling as she reclined to a supine position, her mind reminiscing upon all things Yang as she slowly drifted off to sleep. She remembered the time in the forest, the ride to and from the park on the bike, the comforting embrace in the bookstore café, and the genial conversation at the restaurant. In every memory was Yang's sunny smile, directed solely at her. Blake was genuinely happy; not only had she found someone who cared for her so readily, she had found that her accepting friends had become more of a surrogate family. No longer did this house on the outskirts of the city of Vale feel like just a foreign building in which she was to be confined for the most part during her summer break. In its stead was a warm, comfortable place that could contain supportive teammates, the promise of extraordinary times, and the one person in her life that could cause an indestructible smile to appear on her face at something as fleeting as a memory. Blake could fall asleep easily, allowing the day to end for her knowing that she had found a home.

* * *

When I said that I was happy with how this chapter turned out at the beginning author's note, I should have included an asterisk next to that claim. I am entirely happy with everything in this chapter except one scene in particular. I am on the fence about the dinner scene. I have always found writing meal scenes to be difficult, especially dinners with important subject matter being covered. I don't find it difficult due to the conversation aspect, but due to the myriad of stimuli that present themselves within a restaurant. Between crowds, noisy patrons, servers, quality of food, the act of eating, variations in the environment (such as temperature changing or tables being rearranged), and describing the locale, I tend to feel somewhat overwhelmed. I feel that the dinner scene in this chapter turned out fairly well but I doubt I am going to do many more meal scenes with four characters. There is a reason why there is a break in time in the middle of the meal, after all.

I would also like to note that this chapter acts as the end of the series of chapters covering the group's first trip to Vale. Chapters after this will begin sometime after the end of this chapter. Time will not progress too far ahead at first as that would take away from the importance of the events in the first five chapters. If I was reading a story myself, I would feel robbed if a writer stays with the characters in pseudo-real time for the first few chapters before jumping weeks ahead in the plot. I will just say that chapter six begins only a few days after chapter five. Expect chapters to be grouped in similar fashion to how chapters two through five were. In saying this, I mean that I may write a few chapters in sequence that take place immediately after each other.

Thank you all for reading, reviewing, following, favoriting, or anything that exhibits even the slightest of interest for _Valence_. Seriously, I am still astounded by the support I've received for this story. Stay safe and stay tuned.


	6. Chapter 6: Illumination

I didn't quite expect the amount of positivity shown for chapter five. Not that I'm complaining—I just felt as though it would simply be tolerated, not seemingly enjoyed. Seriously, I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed. I may not be the best at sending personal thank-you private messages (honestly, I've been too anxious to for the most part), but know that I read them all and weigh the opinions and preferences against my own quality checks in the revision process. I feel like I'm making this "thankfulness" thing old and redundant, but it needs to be said. You have been absolutely wonderful in your support. Thank you.

Before I began writing this chapter, I read a short story called, "Some of Us Had Been Threatening Our Friend Colby," by Donald Barthelme. If anyone enjoys dark or matter-of-fact humor, I would suggest reading it somewhere online; it's not too long, spanning only about 1,500 words. Admittedly, I may have allowed the story to influence the beginning scene of this chapter—not through tone or diction, but through the lengths I went to describe something otherwise trivial. I hope the description isn't too off-putting.

Regardless, this is chapter six of _Valence_.

* * *

Chapter 6: Illumination

The ambient sunlight, having snaked its way through the partially closed blinds of the television room, made reading a more accessible experience for the young Faunus. Rather, it was due to the combination of the sufficient lighting that illuminated the pages just enough so that her eyes wouldn't hurt and the figure on which she rested her legs that she was able to focus on the plot of the book, her mind now being at ease with the warm presence near her. It had been two days since she last attempted to read, having found herself at that specific juncture unable to distract her thoughts from the blonde that now sat beside her.

It wasn't necessarily a quiet scene that occurred within the room due to Yang being thoroughly engrossed in her recent software purchase. However, Blake did not mind. She found the energy given off by the blonde to be calming in a peculiar way, having become an accepted part of the exuberant girl's personality since she relaxed to the notion of having exuberant youth as both a partner and significant other. Despite the enthused motions and heated insults thrown at the on-screen characters coming from Yang, Blake was able to peacefully read her novel, lying sideways on the loveseat of the couch with her legs propped on the blonde's lap. It truly felt like a break now. Blake, having opted for short socks to compliment her normal attire for the time being, felt a breeze from the home's air conditioning system chill her legging-less legs. The feeling didn't bother her much, though; she was thoroughly warmed by her girlfriend's radiant aura.

Every once in a while, Yang would sigh and groan at the happenings of her game. Because the annoyance was nothing immediately serious, Blake didn't bother to intervene, choosing to immerse herself in her own form of entertainment: a mix of written word and situational humor exhibited by the girl sitting before her. She found the gestures at least mildly funny. As it was, Yang was regularly animated, and with the theatric display of emotion she was showing, Blake couldn't help but show her mirth. At times, however, she found her appreciation of Yang's ire to be troubling.

There were multiple instances in which Blake felt that the annoyance crossed over into legitimate anger. The fact that she found these scenes humorous was grating on a moral level. She was admittedly having a hard time differentiating between Yang's moments of competitive annoyance and restrained fury. Were it the prior, she would have no qualms about letting the blonde be, but it was the thought that the latter existed and was going unseen that was beginning to distract her from the book. The promise she had made to Ruby still resonated in her mind. She had made it a top priority to keep Yang's emotions in mind and keep them from leaning towards the negative extremes.

The difficulty she had in reading Yang's emotions was stressful in and of itself, causing her to frequently question whether or not she was missing any signs of distress. So far, she could only tell when Yang was tired and that was only due to the blatancy of her expressions when she was fatigued. Even a simple smile could have an ambiguous meaning. As she watched the blonde and not her book, she began seeing the irritation as a sign of Yang becoming upset. She knew these interpretations were probably not true, but it was all she could think about since she had made the promise.

Blake looked down at her novel, now finding the words muddled and uninteresting. She sighed as she closed it; somehow, she had convinced herself that reading was not relaxing right now. She looked at the television screen, seeing the images and how they moved but not comprehending much of it. What she could interpret from the fast-moving gameplay was the intermittent death screen that seemed to trigger Yang's frustration. With her attention now fully focused on her girlfriend, Blake could see that she was not as angry as she had originally appeared to be. There was a confident smirk in place that only vanished for a moment when her character died. Otherwise, she seemed to be enjoying herself. Blake smiled at this, thankful that she had been wrong in her assumptions, yet a bit annoyed at not being able to read her girlfriend's emotions.

She sighed, shaking the thoughts off. "Is it holding up to your expectations?" She was genuinely curious; the game had been on her radar that had been fairly nonexistent since she last played a video game. Now that technology had changed and storytelling within the medium had improved, she found the transition into the newer era of home entertainment to be somewhat jarring in its quality.

A quick, sidelong smile was all Yang could manage before returning her gaze to the screen. "I'm liking it, it's just a little hard. Probably because of all the practice I wasn't able to get at Beacon." Her character died again, causing the blonde to close her eyes for a moment before returning her sight to her actions with her competitive smirk widened. "Don't worry, I've got this."

"I bet you do." Blake found Yang's expectation for her to be equally as immersed in the action of the game to be endearing. In a small way, Yang's attempt at including her in the on-screen occurrences made Blake feel as though she was wanted. It felt like the blonde was trying to bring her into an activity that the both of them could enjoy and she appreciated this. Blake looked back to the screen, making an active attempt to interpret what was going on. It didn't take too long for her understand the general movements, having adjusted to the initially jarring graphics. The plot however, was a different matter. All she could tell as to what was occurring was that a cat wearing a diaper was inside an industrial setting, taking fire from whoever the token enemy militia was. It wasn't until the area was cleared and the screen faded to black that Yang became still and silent and Blake found a way to understand the plot.

A cutscene was occurring, the camera having switched from a very close over-the-shoulder view to frequently changing angles that served to make the narrative all the more intense. Blake was surprised to find that the voice actor for the cat was a deep, gruff, male voice that contradicted the aesthetics of the character while being able to further the importance of the mission at hand. The cat and another character, dressed in form-fitting black armor, were discussing why they were at what was apparently an enemy base. The words "bomb", "moon", and "prototype" as well as the phrase "time is running out" were used in abundance. If one were to take these repeated plot points as the entirety of the story, it would seem cliché. However, with the deliverance of the lines and the animation of the characters, the game seemed anything but.

The cutscene ended similarly to how it began, transitioning smoothly into enveloping action. Blake couldn't help but smile at seeing Yang digest the story that was being thrown at her in between periods of fast-paced action. She doubted she would have gotten the subtle allusions to the legend of Creation, but she could give her a break; there was a very tense, very focused narrative being told that would normally overwhelm the average consumer. To Yang's credit, she seemed to stay immersed, often nodding along when orders were given and scowling when the enemy was talked about. "I wasn't expecting it to be this good. I guess the review was right," Blake mused.

Yang smirked, not removing her eyes from the screen as she systematically maneuvered the controller to her favor. "So, you finally found something more interesting than your book, huh?"

"Actually, for the time being, yes." Blake could see how she might have made this seem suggestive with her gaze locked onto the girl sitting before, but she honestly found the game to be gripping.

Yang sighed as she paused the game. As she looked over to her girlfriend, she held an annoyed stare. "Look…It's kinda hard to tease you if what I'm making fun of doesn't bother you."

Blake smirked. "And?"

"Jerk." Yang frowned.

"You're the one trying to make fun of me. I'm simply being friendly." She kept her smirk, looking otherwise deadpan.

Yang groaned. "Fine, I guess you're not that much of a jerk."

Blake raised an eyebrow. "I think I heard an insult still in there."

The blonde's frown was replaced with a grin. "I have to tease you somehow," was all she said before resuming the game. Her grin remained steady until her character died only seconds into the level. As soon as she rounded the first corner, she was assaulted with unrelenting gunfire and explosive ordnance. The end result was a gradual decline of the sunny attitude as the number of times she had to repeat the level increased. Blake was finding the constant, low growling coming from the blonde funny, up until she saw her eyes turn red. "Okay! That's it! I'm done! This game's rigged!"

At this outburst, Blake realized that her legs that had been resting upon Yang's lap were heating up. She was having some trouble controlling the panic that had set in at the surprising sight, only just being able to quickly plan a course of action. The amused smirk she carried vanished in an instant as she sat up and removed her legs from Yang so that she could move closer to her side. "Yang," she tried to soothe, finding her hand hot to the touch. "Yang, it's all right. Just calm down." Unfortunately, she could not. Her fingers were turning white as she squeezed the controller in a death grip. Blake silently berated herself for not being able to calm her own partner down. Yang had helped her calm down; why couldn't she do the same? "It's only a game. Just take a break and it'll be all right."

"I'm not taking a break. I'll beat this game even if it kills me." Her conviction sounded very real and very delusional. Blake figured words wouldn't be the best approach, so she moved closer to the blonde and placed both of her hands atop those on the controller, braving the heat. After a few seconds, Yang relaxed her grip, if only slightly. Blake took this as an opportunity to move closer, finding Yang's breathing rapid and harsh. She wrapped an arm over the blonde's opposite shoulder and pulled her close, finding that because Yang lacked her leather jacket, the uncontrolled heat could be felt on her arms as well.

For a few very long seconds, Yang continued to seethe at the screen that inquired insultingly whether or not she was ready to respawn. Her body temperature only seemed to flare in this time, becoming hot enough that Blake was almost willing to let go. Before physical instinct could win over a conscious effort, Yang began to cool down. Slowly, her breathing settled and Blake was able to remove the controller from her hands. She quickly tossed it to the cushion beside them as she returned her full attention to Yang. She felt a pressure on the hand that Yang still held and squeezed back.

The audio of the game looped an annoying number of times due to the prolonged lack of action. There had been very few instances where Blake blinked, having been unable to remove her focus from the upset girl before her even for the smallest period of time. She couldn't—she had missed the signs of Yang's festering anger. There were no memories that could rationalize any signs of how it began, only the thought of her own mirth at seeing what was believed to be staged annoyance. She pulled Yang closer, sorry she couldn't have helped sooner. There was some resistance felt when moving the blonde, but overall, she had melted into her worried embrace. Blake didn't know what to say, being in the dark about how or why this happened and even about what to do. There was a time when she had helped Yang calm down before, but circumstances were different; at that time, she had been flying by wire and now Yang was suffering from a different emotion. What she needed was a knowledge she didn't have and could not be learned from any amount of studying. She tried the one motion that seemed to work back in the forest: rubbing Yang's arm slowly and softly, as not to startle her.

It seemed to work. Yang rested her head against the inside of Blake's shoulder and forced her eyes shut. The change in position caused Blake to move her ministrations to Yang's shoulder, incidentally brushing against blonde hair at the apex of her motion. There was a strong desire to run a hand through the golden tresses that was instantly fulfilled. Sparks visibly played across the mane, yet they could not harm Blake; as she touched them, an odd tingling sensation affected her hand. Nevertheless, the motions continued so that she could calm Yang down. She owed her and Ruby this.

The two remained like this for a few minutes until Yang finally sighed. "That game's hard." Blake could not suppress a smile at such a simple summarization of the reason for the outburst. She seemed to be fine—at least Blake hoped so for both Yang's sake and her own. She also hoped that this was a state she could benchmark as being "fine." She stopped moving her hand along Yang's shoulder, choosing to twirl a lock of flaxen hair around her finger. Yang sighed again. "Maybe I overreacted, huh?"

Blake tilted her head so that it rested on top of Yang's as she smirked. "Maybe. At least you were calmer than you usually are when you get that way."

Yang gave a short laugh. "Yeah, I guess so. Still, what am I going to do now? I don't think I can handle playing this game anymore but I still want to." She groaned playfully, "I think there's something wrong with me."

The twirling stopped as Blake thought of what could be done about Yang's impasse. It took her a moment to come to a conclusion that she was more than a little unsure about. Her idea was that if she shared in the pain, it would allow Yang's burden to be alleviated slightly. "Do you think I could try?"

She barely registered Yang's shoulder moving before the controller was placed on her lap. "Be my guest," she said without moving from her position under Blake's arm. Due to this position, Blake was unfortunately unable to reach the controller with the arm that was placed over her girlfriend. After a few futile attempts at trying to grip it at various elevations and distances, Yang moved away, much to Blake's chagrin. Instead of stepping away like Blake thought she was going to do, she changed her position so that she sat sideways on the couch with her legs resting on Blake's lap. "I can see why you like sitting like this. It's sorta comfy—for me anyways."

Blake simply smiled as she relaxed her arms on top of Yang's legs, finding the warmth both relaxing and distracting. It is to say that it was distracting in that the warmth was able to divert her thoughts away from her inability to perceive indications of Yang's emotions rather than distracting from her partner's recent agitation. The warmth seemed to tell her that Yang was all right. Blake smiled back. "Okay, let's see how hard this really is." She was unsure in her abilities but she wouldn't show it. As she gripped the controller, she tried to recall what buttons correlated with which actions from games she had played in the past. The first action she figured out was that one of the buttons near the center of the controller resumed the game.

Instantly, she was in over her head. The next two actions she figured out were movement of the character and movement of the camera. She found the controls disorienting and unresponsive, causing her to unintentionally walk around the first corner into the enemy's line of fire. Her character died, causing the controller to vibrate. Neither of the two frowned. Blake watched the screen, still trying to comprehend what had happened. Yang told her, "Hey, that was about as good as I did. Try going for cover behind that wall. Also, if you press in the right stick, you'll sprint." The uncontrollable sticks had a third dimension to their movement? Blake tried pressing it down and found that a soft clicking noise was made.

She resumed the game and attempted to control her movement a little better. She found that her camera movements were slow and left much to be desired, but she felt she had the hang of moving her character on a horizontal plane. She truly began the level by pressing in the right thumbstick and moving forward. To both girls' surprises, the cat on the screen was able to bolt from the corner towards cover, dodging the bullets as she passed through their line of fire. On instinct, she tried pushing in the left thumbstick as well, causing the character to get low to the ground, fully utilizing the convenient steel-plated wall it stood next to. "Huh. What do you know? Kid's got talent." Instantly, a grenade landed behind the cover and exploded, killing the character and causing the controller to shake. "Okay, that was my fault. I jinxed it. Sorry." Yang rubbed the back of her neck.

"Don't worry about it," Blake said automatically. "I think I'm getting better at it. Do you have any more tips?"

Yang blinked. "Yeah." She seemed shocked. "Umm, right trigger to fire, left trigger to aim closer, and 'A' to jump." Blake took a second to process this information before nodding and resuming the game. She passed the corner, jumping over the line of fire and landed in a crouch behind cover. From there, she made her character jump over a few conveniently placed boxes to reach a catwalk, from which she began taking shots at the enemy. On accident, she pressed a button above the trigger, causing a grenade to be thrown that shattered the enemies' defenses. She picked off whatever enemies still remained until the immediate area was clear. "Whoa," was all Yang could say.

Pausing the game, Blake looked to her gawking girlfriend. "What?" she asked, completely serious and knowing not why Yang's mouth hung open.

"What?" she parroted incredulously. "You got past the part I was struggling with like it was nothing. How'd you do that?"

Blake furrowed her brows. She didn't feel like she deserved this much praise for something like that. "I just didn't let them hit me?"

Yang's gaze cast downwards for a moment, her mouth forming a contemplative frown. "I guess running in close and meleeing them all doesn't always work."

This piqued Blake's interest. "You can physically hit enemies?"

A playful glare was sent her way. "Now you're just rubbing it in. You're good kid, just don't get cocky."

Blake rolled her eyes—the game didn't seem that hard. "I'll keep that in mind," she dismissed before returning to the game. The level went on for a couple of minutes with few instances of conflict and even fewer possibilities that Blake's character could have died. That is, the game had been simple enough for the fast-learning Faunus until she reached what she guessed was the final scene of the level. As soon as the cutscene entailing an inspirational speech by the protagonist intended more for himself than his partner ended, waves of enemy fire came at her character. She didn't have a second to react before she was instantly killed. She tried over and over again, each time getting slightly closer to the cover on either her left or her right, but never quite making it. Her grip on the controller increased with each death. The rumblings of the device seemed not to relent between the brief periods of her character being alive, causing her hands to become numb with the constant droning motion. With her temper being harder to keep under control, Blake found that her attempts at cover became shorter and shorter until she was immediately being killed at the start of the level.

Her golden eyes narrowed to slits and her frown fell to a malicious scowl. She kept quiet on the respawn screen, simply boring holes into the television screen. She was breathing heavily and infrequently. At the concerned calling of her name, Blake snapped. "What kind of developer would think that loading into the game and immediately dying would be fun? Seriously, this is absurd; I can't even move a foot before I have to start over. I know I'm a new player but this is ridiculous! What difficulty am I playing on?" She didn't even look at Yang, choosing to learn to despise every pixel of every letter of the word "respawn."

"Easy," Yang said meekly.

"Easy?" Blake growled. "How is this easy? I don't think I'm being hyperbolic when I say that there are fifty enemies shooting me as soon as I start. There's no way I'm supposed to get past them! So what am I supposed to do? Keep trying for the one time that the AI decides to accidentally mess up and let me get to cover? Then what? I'll just get a grenade thrown at me and then I'll have to restart again." She didn't realize the controller was slowly being pulled from her hands. "It's completely moronic for this developer to make a game difficult for the sake of being difficult. I mean, I'm not having fun anymore and you weren't having fun earlier, so why would they sacrifice fun for impenetrable difficulty?"

Yang had moved to sit close to her girlfriend, using her hand to bear the crushing grip that had previously been exerted on the controller. "I know it's unfair, but I don't know why." She turned off the television as she spoke, not letting the action get in the way of her meaning. "It's a hard game, but that's all it really is. It's just a game—just like you said." Blake was reluctantly pulled closer to Yang, her head being forced against the blonde's chest without being turned away from the blank screen. "You just need to take a breather and get back to it later. It'll be fine, just forget about the game for now."

While the majority of Blake's mind was in favor of continuing to angrily dissect the game for all its fatal errors, she still melted into the embrace and breathed easier, if only slightly. Now that the negative stimulation from the looping music and camera angles that had become associated with failure had been taken out of the equation, Blake was able to relax her thoughts in the silence. As she calmed herself, her negative thoughts against the game shifted to negative thoughts about herself. How was Yang able to calm her down so easily? The transition from passively furious to mildly aggravated happened so quickly. It was as though Yang was running through practiced motions formulated specifically for her. She hated to insult her girlfriend's intelligence, but she believed herself to be the more systematic of the two. How Yang had been able to read her emotions and deal with her anger so well was both baffling and frustrating.

Introspection was proven to be difficult when someone else talked. "You know, you speak really well when you're mad. It's kinda cute, actually." Blake had to force the blush that was forming to disappear. She was supposed to be upset with herself right now, not flattered by a compliment. "How about we do something else for now? It'll get our minds off of the game for a little bit."

There are two reasons why Blake did not answer. The first is that she thought of this as yet another time Yang could read her emotions while the inverse seemed impossible. Even hearing her voice was calming, causing Blake to become more envious instead of angrier. The second reason why Blake did not answer—rather, could not answer—was due to the fact that there was the sudden sound in the foyer of the door opening and multiple pairs of feet marching their way into the house. For only a moment, Blake was ready to combat whatever threat had entered until she realized that the sounds were harmless.

Despite Yang's protests that she wasn't calm enough and that she still seemed angry at the game, Blake escaped the otherwise comforting embrace so that she could look over the couch towards the foyer. Because a doorway obstructed a complete view of the scene, Blake was barely able to see what was occurring in the entryway. The first sight that indicated that anything was going on in the first place was one of Weiss' personal assistants carrying two bags towards the kitchen. He was followed by two more assistants, each carrying two bags of their own. One of the bags that the second assistant carried showed signs of where they had come from. The label from a loaf of bread peeked over the top, reminding Blake that Weiss had planned on shopping for groceries.

As for where Ruby was, the young girl trudged across the foyer carrying the combined amount carried by the three assistants. Even with her hearing focused on the young girl, Blake couldn't decipher Ruby's grumblings as she plodded along. She was followed by Weiss who barked orders and corrections, mostly about improving posture and attitude. The heiress did not carry any bags, already burdened by the supervisory role she had created. Her agitation reached a crescendo at the audible _thump_ of six grocery bags hitting the floor at once. Afterwards, a loud, exasperated sigh signaled the end to her nagging for the time being.

Blake was surprised at the listless manner in which the usually energetic Ruby sauntered into the living room. She seemed to have tuned everything else out, having ignored her sister's welcome and subsequent inquiry as to how her day went. She simply moved in front of an open cushion, paused, and then unceremoniously collapsed face-first into the seat. Blake's brows knitted in concern before she heard Ruby's muted observation. "Groan," she said. This eased a smile back onto Blake's face.

"Rough day, huh?" Yang was smirking knowingly. Blake mentally noted that she was able to definitively read two of Yang's states of mind: tired and teasing—at least, when it came to Yang dealing with her sister. An ambiguous grunt was all the energetic team leader could muster for a reply. "Well, you're going to have to get used to it. You're the one who invited her to spend the entire summer with you."

This caused Ruby's shoulders to shudder. She rolled over, staring blankly up at the stationary ceiling fan and groused, "I hate you."

"Oh, that isn't true. There's nothing to hate about me. I'd _never _take you shopping—I'm not that much of a monster. You're just upset because there's trouble in paradise."

Ruby sobbed comically, "I hate you 'cause you're right."

"Well," Yang said, adopting a smug expression and looking towards Blake. "I am pretty great, aren't I?"

Flippant and purposefully dismissive, Blake responded, "You're all right, I guess." This elicited an annoyed "Hey!" from Yang, but Blake continued talking, choosing to focus her unwavering attention on Ruby. "Ruby, if you don't mind me asking, what's going on between you and Weiss?"

With her arm draped piteously over her eyes, Ruby didn't seem to notice Yang drawing an invisible heart in the air with her fingers before Blake's glare ceased the action. She barely was able to begin with, "You see, I," before the sound of the front door closing resonated throughout the house. The audibly irked clicking of heeled boots moved closer to the trio and caused Ruby to make a whining noise. "She can explain better than I can," she quickly stated before pulling the cape of her cloak over her head in a futile attempt at camouflage.

Weiss marched in quickly, pinching the bridge of her nose so that she was unable to see the other occupants of the room before she started to speak. "Ruby, why did you run away when you still have a job to do?" When she released her exasperated hold, Weiss was able to see Blake and Yang sitting next to each other on the couch. They were sent a warning glare before she returned her leer to the terribly concealed girl. "Well? What do you have to say for yourself?"

Her response came in the form of Ruby pulling her legs up into the cover of her cloak. Now all that was left of the girl was a crimson ball of fabric that emitted a fearful whimper every so often. Blake had to nudge Yang with her elbow in order to stop the snickers that came from her. Scowling and with arms akimbo, Weiss growled, "Ruby, answer me." A frightened squeak and the tightening of the curled form was her only reply. "Answer me," she said in a dangerous, low voice.

"I didn't want to help." Ruby's statement was quick and muted, an attempt at allaying Weiss' wrath.

"I never would have guessed." Weiss could be seen grinding her teeth. Somehow, Blake was able to pick up on the indicators of her other teammates' emotions, just not Yang's. The blonde did not look ready to intervene should the situation turn awry; instead she watched in apparent mirth as her sister and Weiss had a humorously one-sided dialogue. "Now that you're sufficiently rested, you are going to get back in there and help."

"I don't want to." Even though the girl was a rising second year student at Beacon and even though she was, as of three months prior, sixteen years old, she still acted like a child. However, Blake wasn't too surprised, seeing as how Yang was much the same.

"Why not? I'm open to criticism, so out with it." The look she had on her face bordered on predatory, being that her eyes never left the immobile form and her frown never left her features.

At this, Ruby's head peeked out from behind the cape, her face defiant and complacent. "I'm too tired," she whined. "You made me carry six bags by myself. My arms hurt and I don't want to walk anymore."

Weiss shifted her stance so that she balanced away from Ruby, further adding to the disbelieving look on her face. "What did you expect was going to happen? You bought six bags worth of trash by yourself. You should be expected to carry in what you bought. Then you should be expected to put away anything you bought in its correct place once we return." She began tapping her foot. "You didn't put anything away."

"Neither did you!" Ruby was sitting up now, her face completely unobstructed by the cape. "You bought as much as I did and you didn't carry anything in." Weiss looked as though she was about to rebuke this, but Ruby continued. "You had your servants carry your bags and put everything away. You just watched and told us what to do! That's not fair. I had to carry everything in at once! Why couldn't they help? They could have made a few extra trips."

"First of all," Weiss shifted her stance once again, this time so she could tower over the sitting girl, "they are not servants. They are personal assistants employed by the Schnee Dust Company that I have contracted for the summer. Second, there has to be somebody to keep order or else everyone would drop their bags and run for the couch."

"Well, maybe people wouldn't run for the couch if they weren't being treated unfairly!" Ruby's gaze back at Weiss wavered consistently, her arguments being based on defense alone.

"Unfairly?" Weiss bellowed. Blake felt something nudge her side but she couldn't divert her attention from the spectacle of emotion that played out before her. "My logic makes perfect sense! You should be held accountable for what you buy. There's nothing unfair about that."

"It is unfair!" Ruby yelled back. Blake felt another nudge to her side. Yang was giving her a questioning look but she could not decipher what was being asked. She wouldn't be able to ask what it was yet since Ruby was still involved in her verbal battle. "You make everybody else follow your rules but you don't follow them yourself!"

The rest of Ruby's tirade seemed to mute itself with the third nudge of an elbow that came from the blonde. Blake turned to see that Yang was leaning closer, a worried expression on her face. "Hey," she whispered, "maybe we should leave these two alone. I don't want to intervene."

Blake quickly looked between those arguing and Yang before whispering back, "Aren't you going to stop Weiss from yelling at your sister?" Weiss seemed to be overzealous with her reprimands. What was worse was that Ruby was acting in much the same manner. Blake could only predict negativity as the end result of the argument.

Yang returned with a reassuring smile. "She needs to fight this one herself." Blake was about to object and question why Yang felt this way, but she was pulled off of the couch by the wrist. "C'mon; let's get out of here before they notice us gone." Blake had no choice but to let herself be pulled along. As they moved away from the couch, Yang lowered herself to pick up both of their pairs of shoes before briskly moving out of the living room, leaving behind the argument taking place therein.

Keeping her hushed tone for the possibility of the other two hearing her, Blake had to ask, "Where are we going?" They weren't headed to the kitchen or either of their rooms. Instead, the front door came into view and she could only guess that they were headed to it.

"You'll see," Yang said simply. This forced Blake's expression into that of a disgruntled frown. Nonetheless, she complied, following the blonde into the foyer and stopping with her right before the door where she dropped their shoes. Blake watched with the faintest of envy as her girlfriend slid on the sneakers that she had apparently owned but did not bring with her to Beacon. Yang had explained that because they were only relaxing at home, she didn't feel the need to wear her boots. Fortunately for her, she had the luxury of a spare set of shoes that just so happened to be comfortable. Blake was not as lucky, having to wear her own heeled boots everywhere. While she had become accustomed to the balance she was required to maintain at the augmented height and the higher speeds at which she often travelled, she still gazed somewhat jealously at the low, flat, and most importantly, heelless shoes that seemed so casual and comfortable. She saw Yang's gaze meet her own and, for the briefest of moments, she saw a worried look come across the blonde's features. This look did not last, for a beaming grin and an outstretched hand shook any possible negativity away. "Let's go."

The argument from the other room seemed to intensify, yet anything said by either participant was inaudible; the sound alone made Blake uncomfortable, anxious. This was only exacerbated by Yang's inadvertent lack of transparency. "Yang, where are we going?" She was willing to go wherever the blonde wanted, she was simply grasping at any potential information she could that pertained to how Yang acted. She knew it was a hopeless attempt and she knew it would be more beneficial if she learned how to read Yang in a timely fashion, but she couldn't help but try to hasten the process.

With a roll of the eyes, Yang took Blake's hand and pulled her. "I don't know; let's just get out of here." Blake allowed herself to be pulled out of the front door, having deemed the given excuse acceptable in the amount of information it offered. Though, her permission would not have been a truncating factor even if she had opposed the suggestion due to Yang pulling her along preemptively.

The low heat of a summer's noon was lost on the ruminating mind of the Faunus. Yang's reply of no intended destination had not been what Blake expected, yet it did not stop her from forming connections. She figured that the argument had caused the blonde to act before planning, causing the excuse given. This was odd for Yang; she always seemed to have a plan whenever an otherwise awkward situation required one. Blake reasoned that she had been torn between aiding her sister and letting her sister grow by dealing with her own problems, causing a confused and rushed demeanor. She already knew that Yang cared for her sister dearly, so she attributed some of the discord to an internal conflict. However, this did not explain her withholding of information when there was no plan of action in the first place. Was it due to playful mischievousness or pride in not wanting to seem wrong?

The answer did not come due to Blake having to focus her attention on maintaining balance. When she was pulled out the door, she expected Yang to bring her down the steps of the porch and onto the road for whatever reason—out of routine, perhaps. It was this preconception that she would be walking down steps that caused Blake to step as though she were descending a staircase. Unfortunately, Yang did not lead her down the steps, instead choosing to lead her along the porch towards the side of the house. The lack of change in elevation caused Blake to stumble, effectively shaking her from her contemplations. However, she did not fall; Yang had gripped her arm as she began her descent. "Blake!" she heard the figure beside her exclaim. Yang did not release her hold, making it a point to keep Blake balanced even after she was standing on her own. "What happened? Are you all right?"

Perhaps there was an opportune time and place to ponder over Yang's motives and intentions, but that moment was neither here nor now. Blake shook her head, in part to clear her mind somewhat, but mostly to calm Yang. "It's nothing. I just wasn't paying attention is all."

"Yeah, well that much is obvious." Blake met Yang's teasing grin with a slight smile of her own, an attempt to appease the blonde on the subject of her own stumbling. It seemed to work for the time being. "Just remember: you're the one who wanted to wear heels."

"It's not like I had a choice." They continued on their path, Yang still holding onto Blake, but by her hand rather than her arm. Blake hadn't yet had the opportunity to truly observe the layout of the odd porch. As she rounded the side of the building, she found that the deck wrapped around one side of the home, but not the other. The house cast a shadow over the wooden walkway, alleviating the two of the extraneous heat from the sun.

In this cool darkness, Blake found herself more at ease with the situation, causing the her to minimize the distance between herself and her girlfriend. Their arms now touching and their fingers intertwined, they continued to walk. Blake could hear the clicking of her heels on the planks below before the sound was drowned out by Yang's playful reply. "You have a choice about whether or not to go shopping. But I don't think you want to do that, do you?"

Blake only just contained a shudder. The thought of the crowds, the disappointing selections, and the overall inefficiency of all participants in the potential act caused her indifferent demeanor to become more prominent, if only for a moment. "I don't want to go shopping, but I think I will eventually have to. I don't think I need to be constantly ready to fight Grimm every second I'm in Vale." Yang groaned. "What?"

"I know I'm going to have to go with you. I can't let you do something like that on your own."

"So, why did you make that noise?"

"Because I'm going to hate it as much as you will." Blake smirked. Yang was being open with her and was walking close-by—she couldn't ask for more. With the majority of her attention having been focused on the warm presence, Blake was only now able to see that the porch on this side of the house led to set of stairs that gave access to a concrete patio, unobscured by the house's shadow. Both sisters seemed to have failed to inform her that such a place existed. She wouldn't complain, for it was their home, but it would have been nice to know that there was a fire pit outside that they could have been utilizing.

Yang led her down the steps and away from the stone landing as though the area hadn't existed whatsoever. What had been appreciation of Yang's apparent openness changed into worry caused by her avoidance of the patio. It didn't look to be a place of shame—it was remarkably clean for the sisters having been gone for nine months—yet neither sister had so much as alluded to the fact that it existed. However, the cause of this worry was immediately proven false at the sight of Yang's carefree smile. If she had to guess, Yang hadn't talked about the patio because it had simply not come up in conversation.

Perhaps she was being overly critical about Yang's nuances and quirks. Perhaps she was searching for something where there was nothing to be found other than what could be seen at face value. Yang didn't seem like the type to keep her in the dark unless she was in a teasing mood. Other than that, Yang seemed to be a fairly straight-forward person. Still, she did seem as though she needed to mask her negativity, if only for the good of the group.

Seeing the sunny expression on the blonde allowed Blake to reevaluate her approach on learning how to read Yang. She figured it would be better to learn as time passed rather than trying to overanalyze seemingly insignificant cues. She continued to rest her head against Yang's shoulder as they strolled off into a direction that was away from the house.

As they moved away from the stone landing, Blake was met with the slightly jarring sight of a large, rectangular, and shockingly open field. How she had not noticed this sight before was more so surprising when added on to the fact that she hadn't heard of the patio either. On three sides, the field was surrounded by forest—the edge of the sisters' land and the terminus of Vale's civilization. The two were not walking towards the field but instead the forest, taking their time in their travels and reveling in the comfortable silence that lacked argument. Even in this silence, Blake could not help but wonder what the field was for. The only thing that came to mind was that it was used for farming, but neither of the sisters seemed to be the agricultural type. As if on cue, Yang spoke. "Ruby and me used to spar out here sometimes. It had to be big so I couldn't set the house on fire and so Ruby could have room to run. Maybe we overdid it."

Looking up, Blake found Yang smiling at her. In response, she raised an eyebrow. "You made that?"

"Yup!" Yang chirped. "Ruby and me got tired of not being able to practice at Signal so we cut a few trees down and voilà! A big ol' practice field to use whenever we want. Pretty neat, huh?"

Blake's lips curled into a genuine smile that verged on becoming devious. She had a strong desire to say something along the lines of "You would," or "Somehow, I'm not surprised," due to the sisters choosing to build something massive rather than find a place where they could spar. Instead of saying that or anything at all, she simply hummed and relaxed against Yang once again. She felt a warm weight press against the top of her head that was found to be her girlfriend's own head, creating an inseparable closeness as the two walked into the forest.

Although this nameless forest was not as aesthetically pleasing as the Forest of Forever Fall, it was not like the Emerald Forest either in that it was neither outwardly ominous nor visibly dense. Much like the canopied pathway in the park, sunlight from above lit the way for the couple in stripes and spots aplenty. They walked quietly, with no intention of conversation. As Yang watched proudly over the girl walking beside her, Blake closed her eyes, allowing her hearing to take over as her primary perceptive sense while subconsciously nuzzling closer into the warm figure's side. Where they were going was not important; the fact that they were getting farther away from the argument and its participants was what kept them mobile and happy. The absolute serenity and comfortable isolation displayed by this carefree stroll seemed like something pulled from a romance novel and Blake was all the more content for it.

Never once during the pleasantly slow journey did their hands disconnect, their fingers remaining intertwined and unaffected by prolonged exposure to each other. They wandered aimlessly between the trees and over the sea of foliage. As the journey continued and the number of steps taken increased, Blake began berating herself for wearing heels. Her balance did nothing to improve her stride and could not compensate for the fact that the focused points of her shoes often became stuck in the permeable forest floor. The need to rest was growing steadily and she knew it was only a matter of time before she succumbed to the desire. This left her in a distracted state with the only malleable attention she had left focused on her girlfriend.

Unfortunately, this lackadaisical peace had to end due to a quick and almost inaudible form that rustled through the leaves and stopped the girls in their tracks. All thoughts about her heels were replaced by the urgency of an absent Gambol Shroud. Blake automatically moved from the hold, allowing herself to scan her surroundings while letting Yang move behind her in order to watch the area she could not. Back to back, the two stood watching, their centers of balance slowly lowering as they readied for potential combat.

Grimm were said to not exist within the limits of Vale, yet the professors at Beacon had warned their students to not trust hearsay and be alert at all moments. They had never expressly stated that a threat existed within the boundaries of civilization, but the amount of foreboding that snaked its way into their words gave the students reason to not accept the popular belief. Still, some of the faculty could be heard voicing their agreement that Vale was safe, but they remained adamant that it was better to be safe than sorry. This is why the simple stroll through the forest had to cease so quickly and why their attention had to allocate itself to scanning for a potential threat.

In this time of silent tension, Blake was able to find one factor of her heels that she could appreciate: they were able to dig into the foliage enough for her to feel confident that she could hold her position. Both stood with their fists raised, ready to defend against any strike that may come and to strike back at whatever could deal a potential blow. The thickets rattled again; this time, the sound was more prominent, their senses having been trained to that sound. It was heard again soon after, but it was fainter, thusly further away. Blake did not see Yang react to the newer sound out of the corner of her eye. The sound came again from the same faraway distance. Yang did not react.

Swiftly and unabashedly, Blake reached for her bow and freed her ears. Instantly, the rustling sound could be heard as though it were mere feet away. As she tied the ribbon hurriedly around her wrist, she tried to focus on the noise, finding the task much simpler than it had been. Her left ear twitched, telling her that the sound came from that direction. As she turned, Yang did as well, in near-perfect synchronicity forged from their time as partners. Yang's heat was rising yet it was unable to distract the unblinking, detached stare that Blake trained on the source of the noise. The underbrush shook violently and exuded that distracting noise from before. The two didn't wait long for the source of the sound to emerge.

Both were prepared to strike—to go on the immediate offensive and keep whatever made the sound from harming the other. However, neither was prepared for the sight they were met with. A singular squirrel, it's mouth puffed out from whatever carriage it held, emerged quickly from the bush before standing on its hind legs and looking inquisitively at the duo.

Blake relaxed her stance and sighed, half in relief, half in disbelief. At the same time, she heard muffled giggles coming from her girlfriend. Looking to her with a bored expression, Blake found Yang's face red with suppressed mirth. An unadulterated smile twitched occasionally at the corners of her lips, becoming more frequent as her giggles intensified. Blake could understand Yang laughing at what had happened, but she couldn't comprehend the restraint her partner was showing.

In an attempt to understand why she wasn't laughing, Blake looked at Yang's eyes. She was surprised to see something in them—rather, she was surprised that she was able to perceive something from the eyes. Yang was not looking where the squirrel was nor was she looking back into Blake's eyes. Following her gaze, Blake found that Yang was looking at her, but above her eyes. Unaware of why this was, Blake had to ask, "Yang, is everything all right?"

At this, Yang doubled over in a fit of laugher, falling to her knees and onto the forest floor. Her eyes had closed, obscuring any possible line of sight that Blake could follow. Fortunately, she did not need this to tell that Yang was still laughing for the same reason. Between howls of laughter, Yang was barely able to get out the first words of potential sentences—words such as "You," "It," and "Those"—before succumbing to laughter once more. From these three specific words, Blake was able to guess that Yang was laughing at her interaction with the animal. This allowed a small smile to appear upon her features and a slight, unknowing giggle to her voice. "What?"

Yang's laughter had ceased momentarily in order for her to respond. "You looked like you were ready to kill that squirrel!" Her laughter resumed and Blake's smile widened slightly even if she didn't know where Yang was going with her explanation. However, the Faunus' reaction would be short-lived. "You're totally a cat and there's no telling me otherwise!" guffawed Yang.

This immediately caused Blake's expression shift from light-hearted to stoic and finally to annoyed. She now understood what Yang had been staring at and what the "Those" in question were. Her Faunus ears folded back against her head as she sent a short glare Yang's way before turning away. "Blake, wait," Yang sniffled, trying her hardest to recover from the uncontrollable amusement. But it was too late; Blake stood resolute, facing the opposite direction and trying to untie her ribbon from her wrist. "Blake, I'm sorry." Any remaining signs of laughter were gone now, replaced by a sincere tone of concern. Blake acted as though she couldn't hear her as she continued trying to unravel her bow. In her upset state, she found it a much more difficult process than it should have been. Because she tried to tune out Yang's voice, she was unable to hear the approaching sound approaching footsteps.

Blake tensed as Yang embraced her from behind. Her arms were confined and were forced to cease their actions as they were restrained by the blonde's hug. She wanted to get away, but she could not bring herself to do so. Yang was too strong and the hold wasn't necessarily uncomfortable. With her head still ducked from looking at her bow, Blake could see Yang's arms wrapping around her midriff—the hold wasn't overbearing; in fact, Yang's arms neither looped nor locked to restrict Blake's movements. The embrace was calm and caring, yet unrelenting and bold. Blake stiffened further at the approaching of a warmth noticeably different from Yang's regular body heat. She could feel her girlfriend's breath on her shoulder as Yang's head lowered to sit parallel to Blake's.

"Please don't." Yang's voice was soft and small. "I think you look better without the bow." Blake frowned. She wasn't putting the bow back on to punish Yang but instead to defend herself from any further jokes. However, Yang's pleading tone caused her to reconsider her actions. "I didn't mean for my jokes to hurt you." Intentions did not matter much when the action itself had already caused a negative reaction. "I'm sorry, Blake." As much as she hated to admit it, she was—Blake could hear the sincerity in her voice. As she finished her plea, Yang tightened the hold on Blake and nuzzled closer to her girlfriend. "Please don't be mad," she whispered.

What use was fighting for years to have her species recognized as people rather than animals if she let a joke about her being a cat go? She had done so before, but the jokes in those instances had been nothing serious since she knew her teammates regarded her as another intelligent being. Still, the fact that Yang had said, "you can't tell me otherwise," stung. Those five words aptly summarized why she had fought with the White Fang—why the Faunus had struggled—and the worst of it all had been that it came from Yang. Her partner had been particularly attached to the prospect of making cat jokes, so Blake could assume that this was only another instance of a teasing remark between friends, but the possibility that it wasn't still existed. However, there was a statement in the apology that seemed to contradict those five words.

Blake knew now why Yang had suddenly hugged her. While there were some comforting and appeasing intentions to the hold, Blake was sure that there was some underlying cynicism and she was fine with that. The statement that she looked better without the bow more than humanized her. It showed acceptance coming from a human rather than flirtatious interest that could be shown by another Faunus. It was Yang's cynicism about wanting to see more of her Faunus ears that caused the raven-haired girl to feel as though those years of fighting hadn't mattered and that she had won in the end. She relaxed into the hold and felt Yang smile into her neck. She couldn't bring herself to smile yet, but she did roll her eyes as a way to show some positivity.

Time seemed to be the last of the couple's concerns as they stood in the forest, immobile and comfortable in the midst of the embrace. After minutes that felt like blissful hours, Blake felt Yang's smile widen again. She had been ready to ask what the smile was about, but Yang spoke first. "You smell nice." Suddenly flustered and active, Blake struggled free of the embrace, causing Yang to inquire a playfully confused, "What?"

Free from the hold and unsure of what to do in response to the complement, Blake balled her hands into fists as she watched her girlfriend and thought of a way to quickly change the subject so that she could avoid awkwardly dealing with the compliment. With her mind made up on an unrefined plan, Blake quickly took Yang's hand and pulled her along. Before Yang could protest, Blake said, "Come on, Ruby and Weiss are probably done arguing and are wondering where we are."

Yang smiled and went along with it for a moment before she stopped abruptly, anchoring Blake from moving any further. She stood wide-eyed, looking as though she had seen a ghost. "Blake," she began, audibly worried, "I forgot which way we came from."

Still unable to look at Yang, Blake pulled fruitlessly against Yang's immovable stance. She said, "Just follow me, I know where to go," as an attempt to dislodge the blonde from her position. It seemed to work as Yang's smile returned and she practically skipped along while Blake started forward suddenly.

It wasn't that she was embarrassed by the compliment—in fact, Blake did not know why she was acting this way. If she had to guess, her reason for not being able to look at Yang and her inability to take the compliment could have been caused by either shame at her hostility towards a rodent or the significance of Yang's sincerity shown through the apology and compliment. Either way, she began to move faster at Yang's subsequent exclamation of "You're the best!" Blake knew that her current reaction was off, but try as she might, she could not coolly accept the compliments. Fortunately, this embarrassed and meek reaction faded as they made their way out of the forest.

Much like their walk in the park forest, the journey back was much shorter than the journey there. Because of the distance Blake kept from Yang, she was able to calm down from her apparent embarrassment. Concurrently, because of the contact that she maintained, she was able to steadily regain her normal level of comfort. As the distance from the house closed, so did the distance between the two girls. By the time the house could be seen though the thinning wood, the couple walked side-by-side, once again comfortable with each other's close presence. The thought of donning her bow did not cross Blake's mind; she figured that because she was trying to adjust the team to her not wearing the ribbon and because Yang seemed so enthused by the idea of her not wearing it, she could go without concealing her ears for the time being.

The sun still hung high and time seemed to have not passed during their venture into the forest. As they finally passed the tree line, Yang began to move forward, taking the lead now that she knew where she was going. At the same time, the heat of midday became apparent, causing Blake to feel stifled but still wanting more. Relief was attained as the two entered the shadow of the house, climbing the steps by the patio.

As they walked along in the shadows of the porch, Blake noticed Yang raising an eyebrow. "What is it?" she hummed.

Yang squinted and moved her head closer to the house for a moment before returning to her regular posture with a confused expression. She whispered, "I don't hear them arguing. Do you think something happened? Maybe Weiss scared Ruby off or Ruby said something to make Weiss mad." She had an odd expression that seemed both worried and genuinely curious.

Blake squeezed her hand, ceasing the blonde's concerns. "I'm sure they're fine," was all she said on the subject. It seemed to be enough to truncate any further qualms from Yang, bringing a warm, confident smile to the sunny girl.

The entrance into the house took longer than it should have, due in large to Yang making it a point to be quiet as to not alert either girl to their presence. She said that it added to the suspense of it all and would pay off when they caught the two being amiable. Blake doubted that they would find the two acting in such a way so soon after a heated argument, but what she found contradicted her doubts and caused Yang to become mischievously enthused.

As they entered the home theatre room, Blake could see a few of the spikes of Weiss' tiara peeking over the top of the couch. The crown hadn't moved at the entrance of the couple, leading both to believe that she was still furious at Ruby. Yang seemed to think that the only rational thing to do would be to walk in front of Weiss and force her to detail what had transpired. Blake didn't have time to object before she was pulled to stand in front of the heiress. The sight she was met with made her forget that she had been hesitant about the action in the first place.

Yang had been somewhat correct in her assumptions that Ruby and Weiss would be on better terms; however, neither expected the two to be as comfortable around each other as they were in this present scene. What Blake hadn't noticed before was that Weiss' tiara could be seen above the seat to the left of the loveseat portion of the couch—the seat that Ruby had occupied earlier. Not only was Weiss sitting on this seat, but Ruby was as well. Though, it would be incorrect to describe their positions as "sitting" in this instance, for neither showed signs of being awake or even attempting to maintain an upright posture. They were asleep now, huddled against each other on a couch seat designed for a single person, causing them to lie in a form of hug that seemed both affectionate and necessary so that neither would fall off. Both looked blissfully distant from their regular personalities; Ruby was calm and kept a soft smile and Weiss' frown did not seem as condescending as much as it was dissatisfied.

To think that those two could have argued the way they did now seemed preposterous. Their emotional defenses were blissfully nonexistent, causing them to look like children who had tired themselves out. However innocent their hold on each other looked to be, there was nothing childlike about the reasons behind it. It was wholly apologetic, regretful, and necessary.

Before anything could happen, Blake noticed a devious smirk on Yang's face. "No," she whispered quickly. She then saw that Yang was looking around the immediate vicinity for something. "Yang, don't do anything to them. They've been through enough."

In a show of playful annoyance, Yang let out a long sigh. "I was just going to take a picture of them," she whined. "I want to save such a precious moment." The mischievous glimmer in her eyes faltered at Blake's serious glare. "Fine," she sighed, "can I at least get them a blanket? They look cold—well, at least Weiss does."

Blake rolled her eyes. "Sure." Yang left the room, leaving her girlfriend to watch over their sleeping teammates. Blake was sure that if Weiss knew about this, she would unleash one of her loudest, harshest tirades upon her, Faunus or not. She knew that Ruby would show her some mercy, but she felt for Yang. If one of the two knew that Yang saw them, the other would know soon after and Yang would be subjected to the wrath of both girls. Fortunately, it could have been worse. A picture could have had major implications on the structural integrity of the team—a blanket would work well.

Yang hadn't been gone for a minute before giddily returning with a blanket in hand. Forgoing any sense of stealth, Yang unfurled the blanket, shaking any remaining folds out and causing an obnoxious, flapping sound to fill the room. Her grin told Blake that this noise was intended and all the Faunus could do was roll her eyes—there was no point in stopping the noise now that it had ceased. Yang's lowering of the blanket did not go unseen by Blake, mostly due to the fact that the Faunus knew how opportune this moment could be for the blonde. Yang seemed to take extra care in making sure the fabric covered both girls, going so far as to tuck them in. Blake felt that their movement closer together caused by her girlfriend's action was intended as well. She sighed.

Yang stepped back to inspect her work and after finding it at least tolerable, smiled at Blake. "So, what now?"

Amber eyes were trained on the sly gleam that still existed within the lilac orbs. Seeing this, Blake knew that she needed to distance Yang from the two. "Why don't we see what they bought at the store? Perhaps we could find something for lunch."

"I don't know," Yang drawled. "All that walking made me tired and I _kinda_ want to get back to the game."

Blake could see that there were ulterior motives to Yang's suggestion and she could guess what they were—she was now able to read that smirk and predatory twinkle of the eyes like a book. A hard "No," was all Yang got as a response before she was dragged away towards the kitchen. She was not upset by this in the least, grinning the moment Blake's hand touched her own and led her away from her would-be targets.

Their lunch would be wonderfully genial with conversation shifting between one meaningless subject to the next, often harkening back to the recent incident with the squirrel. Intermittent apologies came from the blonde which were quickly accepted by the Faunus. The ridiculousness of the situation was discussed without any further references to cats. Throughout the meal, Blake's freed ears reacted to the topics and mood, showcasing her emotions when her instilled stoicism did not otherwise allow it. She was happy with the situation—the meal, the company, and even the nonchalance of not wearing her bow—and would quietly watch Yang's expressions so that she would not be caught off-guard by any further actions or jokes.

While the couple's lunch may have gone well and without incident, what happened afterwards was quite the opposite. The belief that the action of placing a blanket over Ruby and Weiss would be relatively harmless when compared to taking a picture of the two was proven false. Even from the kitchen as she cleaned her plate, Blake could hear the other partnership waking up. What had started as hushed whispers turned into confused murmurs. This quickly turned into the duo shouting Yang's name and marching into the kitchen, disheveled and blushing. Despite their fiercest glares, the toothy grin Yang held never faltered—though, it is to say that Blake saw small cracks in the façade.

The two stared at the blonde for what felt like hours before looking at each other, blushing even harder than they had been, and hastily retreating to their separate corners, Ruby to the couch and Weiss to her shared room. The toothy grin turned towards Blake with a new addition of two thumbs raised in self-satisfaction, causing the Faunus to smile and shake her head. She knew that Yang was confident about her apparent victory and seemed sure that nothing would happen, but she also knew that it was only a matter of time before her teammates aired their grievances in a less-than-friendly way.

Until then, however, the two would enjoy each others' company as they cleaned their dishes and made lunch for Ruby and Weiss in case they got hungry. Neither would talk about what they had seen upon their return nor would they mention their teammates' subsequent reaction, instead choosing to remain close to each other and wait out the impending storm.

* * *

I hope the description of the video game wasn't too much. I thought that I might let the reference run its course to completion because while I found it humorous to an extent, there's only so much to say about it before it becomes boring. Perhaps I went too far with it, but just know that the description is not entirely meant for superfluous elaboration or to fill pages (Most of what I write seldom is.). I will admit that some of the description was forced just so that I could move the chapter's plot along, but it is almost never one-dimensional. It may be too late for me to mention how much I love writing hidden, ambiguous metaphors and general word play that both foreshadow later parts of the story.

Do you remember how I said that I would probably never write a chapter that was 20,000 words long again? Me too. Unfortunately, I enjoyed writing chapter seven far too much and the word count naturally found its way past 20,000. I would like to apologize in advance—not for the chapter's length, but for its content. Comparatively, this chapter is light-hearted, even with the argument and Blake's self-destructive introspection on her now remedied inability to read Yang's emotions. You have been forewarned.

Even though I've probably run this into uninteresting redundancy, I would still like to thank you for reading and for making it this far into the story. Seriously. By the time I post this chapter, I should break one thousand unique visitors and that is absurd to me in the most positive sense. At a single time, I've had at most ten people read a manuscript of mine as it progressed to offer criticism or general support. I thought that _maybe_ I would have two hundred readers for this story. I know that the "1,000 visitors" statistic does not necessarily mean one thousand users who have read completely through chapter one, but it's still astounding. Thank you. I'm beginning to believe posting on this site has been one of the most emotionally rewarding moments in my life. This sentiment would not be possible without your support.

Stay safe and stay tuned.


	7. Chapter 7: The Storm

I am never ceased in my amazement at the show of support I have received from this site. Just about every reviewer and those who have sent me private messages have been some of the kindest people I have ever come in contact with. At the same time, they have not been afraid to voice their opinions and concerns and that is incredible! Really, thank you all. It means a lot to me.

Without spoiling anything, I will say that the content of this chapter is a bit more…heavy-handed than the others. Nothing is written to shock or offend; some of the subjects described are merely less lighthearted than the rest of the narrative. The subjects described are the reasons why this chapter is as long as it is (for which I apologize in advance). This is just a warning in case anyone needs one.

I also ask that after finishing the chapter, you read the author's note at the end. The last part of it is fairly important.

Prepare yourselves. Chapter seven of _Valence_ is a bit of a bumpy ride.

* * *

Chapter 7: The Storm

Humans were a deplorable breed—rather, these humans that clustered before the erected barricades and rattled the gates with their incessant stomping and jeering were a deplorable breed. By no means was this the peaceful, exciting summer that Blake looked forward to after her first year at Beacon Academy. A harrowing, autumnal gust rushed past the younger Faunus girl and chilled her to the bone without being able to sway her volunteered resolve. Those who planned this event called it a "rally," and though it was not to be expressly peaceful if those in power had any say in the matter, Blake was young and naïve enough to believe it would be and would trust in those she called a family. With a steely gaze, she watched the crowd that slurred obscenities at her and her comrades. She watched in disgust as these people who were so ignorant of her people and so evasive to diplomatic discussions tried to end their peace rally. She hoped this wouldn't end in conflict; conflict would only dig a deeper hole for the Faunus people. Perhaps it wouldn't end in conflict. Perhaps they could make their speech, affect a few people with it, and leave in peace. Perhaps.

For the moment, all she could do was wait, watching the crowd for any signs of riot and gazing infrequently at the rolling, grey clouds that burdened the light of day. There wasn't anybody to talk to—not that she would have if there had been. These were new, forgettable faces of a lower cell in the organization—grunts if she was to be completely honest. She had been patient for some time now and her ability to wait without complaint was wearing thin. Out of all of these grunts, there was yet to be a person of higher rank able to be seen at the event. The speaker had not yet arrived and if he didn't get here soon, then their efforts would be for naught; the crowd would erupt into violent protest against an opposing peaceful protest. She had to remain calm. The others looked to her for de facto leadership.

This leadership, however, was infrequent as she was barely able to control her anger enough to consider herself level-headed. Who were they calling animals, anyway? She and the White Fang were using words to prove their point. Their response was to shake the barricades despite the pleas of the rally members. Too many had swarmed to this factory's front gates. Some must have been employees and could be justified with their anger, but there were far too many humans here. This created a problem for the younger member of the White Fang, who had to watch for any potential problem. Unfortunately for her, there were many variables to watch over.

The size of the crowd would not draw the attention of the media. There were a large number of humans present, but there was nothing historic about the crowd's size—it could be reasoned that the majority of the nearby small town's residents came to participate in this counter-protest. Still, it was enough to set the stoic Blake Belladonna on edge. She normally wasn't afraid of crowds, but between the sheer quantity of those involved and their degree of fervent opposition, she found herself worried about probability. She knew that even with her speed and hand-to-hand combat knowledge she could fend off only a few of the humans should relative civility deteriorate. There were more than a few humans here—so much so that she believed that even with the grunts there to assist her, she wouldn't be able to make it out alive if the crowd rioted. It was for this reason that she became increasingly aware of the foreign weight that burdened her hip.

She knew that she had blindly accepted the pistol given to her before thinking of the consequences of having it on her person. She had missed neither the frightened and enraged looks on the faces of the crowd members nor the slightly jealous expressions of the other White Fang members as both groups watched the firearm warily. She was not happy about it herself; taking the weapon meant that she had accidentally agreed that if the situation turned to violence, she would be ready to remedy any potential problem. Her own problem was that she wasn't ready to remedy anything involving this rally. The speaker was supposed to be here by now to assume leadership. Since he wasn't here yet, she was put in charge of the other members because she had the pistol. She didn't know why they gave it to her since she hadn't had any training with any firearm as of yet nor did she know why they had trusted her of all people to take charge of this rally for the time being. However, she had a responsibility not only to those that she called friends in the White Fang, but to the message that they were to give to the masses as well. Because of this, she blindly took the gun.

Blake's head shot up to look at the crowd at the sound of a low, rumbling noise. Fortunately, nothing had changed within the upset group of humans. Her eyes drifted up towards the subtly darkening clouds. She had originally thought the sound had been a growing murmur of discontent amongst members of the crowd—one that would incite potential violence, causing the quick reaction—when it turned out to be simple thunder.

She had been too preoccupied with watching the clouds quickly drift across the sky to notice that there had been movement on the ground. It wasn't until she heard the jeering of the humans come back in full force that she knew something was happening. Despite the insults and the palpable animosity, the crowd parted so that a long, black limousine could pass by and through the metal gate of the factory. As soon as the vehicle was inside the lot, the grunts scrambled to their posts and did everything in their power to obey the orders that Blake automatically called out. The gate was closed, counter-protesters pushed out, and a perimeter was secured. This last item on the list struck Blake as odd because not only was establishing a perimeter accustomed to more militant operations than a peace rally, but because she had no prior knowledge that those members of the White Fang whom she assumed to be grunts were capable of such an organized feat.

It seemed as though she was not the only one with these sentiments. The rattling on the barricades and the gates had quieted over time, but with the introduction of the limousine, it came back in full force alongside chants of aggression and hate. This is why the White Fang was here; the things they spewed were vile and caustic and, most of all, wrong. These humans didn't understand the White Fang's cause, judging by the fact that they became hostile at the entrance of a diplomat. However, this was prepared for. Since they seemed to not care for a dialogue, the White Fang would hold a monologue.

Unfortunately, the monologue seemed to have the possibility of not coming to fruition if the weather had any say in the matter. Thunder shook the earth on which Blake stood once again, this time overpowering the crowd and sending them to a momentary silence. It is not to say that the White Fang members were unnerved either—both parties paused for a moment as the far-off lightning made its warning evident before resuming their respective activities.

Blake could barely focus on the man stepping out of the vehicle due to her mind remaining fixed on the possibility of inclement weather and the crowd becoming increasingly prone to rioting. The insults shifted from generalities to personal remarks with terms such as "Liar," "Radical," and "Murderer" becoming common amongst the crowd's members. It wasn't the definitions or connotations of the words that concerned Blake—she knew that the White Fang's leadership was seldom the first term and never the latter two—but the ferocity with which they spat them. She could hear a group's conviction in their ideals due to her prior experiences attending White Fang speeches, so she was sure that these humans believed what they were saying. They were so pitiful, so misguided.

Two variations of the chant, "Let us in!" could be heard from the crowd. On one hand, the workers of the factory were sincerely demanding entrance to their place of work so that they could earn their pay. This was admirable to some extent; they seemed to not care about the bias against the Faunus, their lower pay, and fewer employment opportunities and were thusly not necessarily opposed to Faunus coworkers. But their indifference on the matter was precisely why the White Fang was here—so that they could make the workers care and to convert them to their cause.

However, only a fraction of the crowd was from the factory. Those who came from the town were more violent in their demands, audibly wanting nothing less than harm to befall the organization and its leadership. This is what caused the separation in tone. One group was pleading for entrance while the other was demanding entrance. The worst part was that the speech hadn't started yet. The crowd's anger was guaranteed to grow when the White Fang began to detail its purpose.

This was immediately proven evident as the speaker took the stage that had been set up before the gates. The roar of discontent became deafening on both an auditory and ideological level. How could people be so imperceptive and ignorant of an opposing viewpoint? She couldn't answer this question because humans were so different—so alien—that Faunus common sense surely couldn't apply. Her attention could not be distracted from the crowd's movements by another growl of thunder. Nobody in the crowd seemed to be phased by the weather any longer. The anger amongst the masses was so common that chants and defamation of property became frequent incidents, causing the White Fang's movements to become clockwork due to the amount of time spent practicing for an event such as this. The weather became a nonentity to both parties, unable to do anything more than the White Fang had already attempted.

Her hand subconsciously made its way to the grip of her gun as she watched the slow climb of the black-clad White Fang diplomat to the podium. She didn't know why the weapon felt right in this instance. Perhaps it was the promise of protection against an enemy out of range for hand-to-hand techniques. Perhaps it was the speed at which an offense could be halted with its utilization. Perhaps it was the fact that the firearm was the only thing keeping the crowd from killing the speaker. No matter what the cause was, Blake was severely uncomfortable with her attachment to the weapon. All of these rationalizations were fueled by an idea that she had resented for the longest time: violence can solve problems and send a message if done correctly. In this instant, she thought herself no better than those in the crowd.

Everything was relatively calm. The crowd felt at ease with their chosen diction of slanderous remarks while the speaker simply smiled and waved, unprovoked by the contained anger. Whoever he was—she didn't and wouldn't know his name due to the cell-type structure of the organization—he was professional to say the least. As he tapped the papers of his speech against the podium, he gave a conspicuously sincere smile to those that berated him. Blake felt that the situation was strangely off. The picture painted before her of the decrepit factory lot, the gates and barricades that had fallen into disrepair, and the low light conditions and humidity of the approaching storm made her unable to relax. She had believed that things would change at first, but that was before she was aware of how adamant the crowd members were in their beliefs. They wouldn't change their minds and the speech would only serve to make them angrier.

It is to say that the speech could have had the possibility of inciting violence had it the opportunity to begin. The word "unfortunate" is a rather positive description for the scene yet to play out, having connotations linked to trivialities and nuisances far too petty for the lasting effects of the actions set to unfold. So it is to say that unfortunately, neither the speech nor the reaction to the speaker could occur. Everything about these two rallies, those for and against Faunus civil rights, would be proven relatively peaceful and desirable after the intervention of a present but ignored third party.

Nobody saw the results at first, all wincing at the thought-truncating and deafening clap of thunder. Due to the varied physiology of their race, enhanced senses are a key feature of many variations of the Faunus people. Those with enhanced hearing (Including Blake, the speaker, and many of the grunts in the factory lot.) were brought to their knees by the incredible sound overhead. Blake had fallen to her knees, almost toppling over entirely at the loss of balance attributed to a momentary loss of hearing in both of her pairs of ears. The pain was only worsened by the wails of those around her and by the microphone the speaker used in order to call out in pain for either help or mercy. She had shut her eyes in an attempt to alleviate some of the pain but had only caused a voluntary blindness, causing her world to be affected by neither vision nor sound. It was in this void of pain that she could not see the fire.

The humans had recovered far faster than the Faunus had and shifted their angry, resentful glares from those in front of the factory to a sight of sheer horror that was the old factory. While the pain of the thunder was keeping a majority of the White Fang members down and out of action, the humans watched as the factory fell victim to a bolt of lightning that had gone unseen with the collective wince at the noise.

Nothing happened at first; the building retained its structural integrity and seemed to withstand what nature had thrown at it. However, just as the crowd's hopes that the factory was unscathed swelled, a fire peeked over the apex of the roof. Though the roof had been made of corrugated metal, the sheets had been attached to each other not by welding, but by a rubber-like material that was better suited for keeping out rain but was prone to catching fire. The humans stood terrified at the spreading spectacle that seemed to consume the entirety of the roof. That is, they had been standing in place due to shock until the roof fell in.

Blake couldn't remember if it was the groaning of the roof's metal dropping to the floor of the building or if it was the intense clattering and subsequent shattering of the barricades and gates that she heard first. Either way, the first thing she saw was a result of both sounds. As she reopened her eyes, she saw a swarm of humanity rushing into the lot as the brick-walled factory burned. No optical damage had been dealt to her, yet she could not register what she was seeing. There hadn't been that many people in the lot and the factory was supposed to have a metal roof. Furthermore, she didn't remember the that the sky had been as dark as it was now or that it was raining.

As she forced herself to a standing position, some part of Blake's mind told her that the current of unidentifiable, silhouetted forms cascading into the factory lot was hostile. She couldn't remember who anyone was, too shocked by the radically different sight which she had opened her eyes to. She was alarmed by the fact that the crowd had overtaken the stage and podium, but did not know why. Instead, her instincts told her to run. Without a thought in her mind arguing against it, she obeyed.

Even in her dazed state, Blake knew that running towards the crowd could not end well for her. Unfortunately, her only means of escape besides running through the front gate was to vault over the wall of the lot after jumping from a nearby parked car. What was unfortunate about this plan was that the only car sat on the opposite side of the lot. Because her equilibrium had been thrown off with her temporary deafness, Blake believed that the wall would be the hardest part of her escape. However, it was what was between the two walls of the lot that would cause lasting difficulty.

Thunder rang out again. She didn't know if the sound was not as loud as it had been before due to the possibility of the storm leaving or if her hearing had been damaged to where the thunder wasn't having the same effect. Neither the lack of knowledge nor the raucous sonority could slow her movements. What could have slowed Blake's movements, but never did, was the rain that had instantly slicked the asphalt surface, making it difficult for her to run with heels she had yet to become accustomed to. Nevertheless, she ran as fast as she could for the wall.

Another clap of thunder reverberated throughout the area, slowing Blake's progress by only a small amount due to it having distracted her from the slick pavement for a long enough period of time that she had almost fallen. Yet she did not fall and instead ran with eyes trained on her exit and nowhere else. She knew that there was a portion of the crowd chasing after her but she couldn't look at them, she had to move.

Unfortunately, sight was not the only sense at her disposal. She could hear the grunts that had fallen either to intense sound or to human violence groan in pain. However, they weren't asking for help or for the humans to relent, but instead called Blake's name.

With the calling of her name, the rational part of her mind came back into working order at a most inopportune time. The first thing she thought was not how to escape, whether or not she should use her weapon, or if she should aid the fallen White Fang members. No, in her distressed state of mind, Blake could not focus her thoughts on anything rational, instead opting for entertaining the more irrational, overly sentimental ideas. The single-most abrasive thought that ran through her mind was that she was a coward for not helping, for not using the pistol she was given, and for not aiding those who had fallen. She was helpless, a failure, and utterly incompetent. She could only care for her selfish goal of escape. She thought that the piercing wails of those in pain would not affect her if she kept her eyes shut. This would not be the case.

She could hear the roar of the crowd behind her. With her eyes closed, it didn't sound as though twenty humans were chasing her but thousands of militant savages instead. But the crowd's bellowing could not affect her as much as the wails of her allies. "Blake?" they called to her. She couldn't understand why she could still hear them. They were so far away and the noise coming from every other source was so overpowering that their voices should have been drowned out. But they wouldn't relent.

She was so close to the car and the wall when she felt an odd sensation in her legs. Had she been horizontal in that instant, she would have described the sensation as her legs falling beneath her. Yet she was vertical, causing her to feel as though her legs were giving out on her. She was so close to the car and the wall and she felt as though she might not be able to make it. It felt like she was about to trip when she heard her name called again. "Blake?" This time, it didn't come from the voice of any White Fang member nor did it come from a voice associated with autumn or a factory or the oppression of an entire race of people.

"Blake?" The dreary, frightening, autumnal scene that had played out before her vanished as Blake slowly became aware of the actual scene around her. Gone was the factory lot and in its stead was a white room, devoid of any hint of misery or grime. Rain had ceased and was replaced with the comfortably slight chill of air conditioning. There were no more crowds of people feuding over opposing ideals. There was only Blake, the intimidating hardcover book open on her lap, and the figure sitting on the side of her bed that asked, "Blake? Blake, are you all right?"

It is to say that after unwillingly falling into a flashback from stress considered post-traumatic, Blake was not at all "all right." However, this was not considered too large a problem by the Faunus who had encountered congruent visions before. Still, she could not say that she had become accustomed to the painful memories and it was for this reason she continued to feel mental and emotional anguish. But she would not show this pain as it contrasted her adherence to the school of stoicism and the belief that her past should stay in the past. Instead, she blinked a few times, focusing her sight on the concrete image of the figure in yellow before sighing and stating, "Yeah, I'm fine."

Yang shifted her position on Blake's bed so that she was no longer sitting with legs hanging off of the side. Her new position was a cross-legged one that incidentally allowed her knee to brush against Blake's leg, causing an inexplicable warmth to radiate throughout her and made it noticeably easier for her to breathe. Yang's brows furrowed at the statement. "That didn't look like 'fine.' I called your name like five times and you didn't even glare at me. You always get mad at me when I try to talk to you while you're reading."

Why did she have to be so perceptive? At the mention of her apparent "reading," Blake smoothly closed the book on her lap and set it to the side, allowing Yang to see the almost-dead language written on its cover and causing her to lose interest in the book. Though Blake had been shocked by the vision, she had not fallen into a state of immobile shock. She was haunted by the flashback but was able to retain her systematic composure and was able to not draw attention to what she was "reading." As the book had been her diary and unfortunate memoirs of times in the White Fang, she could not let Yang see it, causing the disregarding closure that evaded Yang's curiosity. She looked into her partner's eyes, intent on veiling the true reason for her unresponsiveness. "I'm sorry." She faked a yawn; she couldn't bring herself to tell the truth. "I was just tired."

Yang raised an eyebrow. "Uh-huh. Sure. Yeah, I believe that." Her slight frown was changing into a smirk that was both teasing and caring, able to dismiss much of the negativity that clouded Blake's mind. "Look," she said, "I'm here for you if you need to talk. I'm not going to bug you like Ruby or the friendly princess, but I want you to know that if you want to talk about whatever's bothering you, I'm here." Her smirk broadened into a wide smile for a moment before she stood from the bed. "Anyways, I came to tell you that we're going to start up the fire pit pretty soon. I thought you'd want to know because it was your idea in the first place. Also," she scratched the back of her neck, "if you wanted to hang out with us too, that'd be cool."

With this final statement, Blake was able to momentarily forget the anguish and allowed herself to roll her eyes and smile. Even still, Yang was acting somewhat awkwardly around her despite the fact that they had been dating for a few days now. "I'll be there. Just give me a minute."

This brought Yang's sunny smile to full force. "All right! I'll see you out there. The fire should be burning when you get there."

At this, Yang left, leaving Blake to recuperate and contemplate on what had just happened. Of course she knew what had happened when she zoned out; she knew when she was having a flashback since it was hard not to recognize that sensation. But it was the quick transition from momentary shock to relative normalcy that baffled her. Usually, it took Blake at least a few minutes to overcome the visions, yet with Yang's presence, she had returned to a regular, calm state of mind within a matter of seconds. This recovery might have been due to her emotional attachment to Yang, but considering the severity of the visions, she couldn't be sure that this was the case. She believed that Yang's presence had affected her somewhat, but even then, she should be still in some level of disrepair. Yet because Yang had been there and told her that she was able to be talked to, Blake was able to recover surprisingly quickly.

She knew it was in poor form to second-guess this opportunity, but she wanted to know how it could be recreated. There was a moment just then where she thought about dispelling this idea, thinking that her studious mind was trying to regress back into an education-focused mindset. However, she did not dispel the thought because it could have been useful. These visions were not necessarily common, but happened frequently enough that an instant cure such as the one Yang induced could help. Whatever this remedy was, it had only happened once and she could assume that it would not work every time. However, the occasional assistance would be a welcome change of pace, especially if it continued to include Yang's presence.

She sighed. Admittedly, this objective that she created for herself would probably never be completed—not because of the difficulty of the task, but due to probable distractions and her willingness to be distracted. Blake had no official training in mental health sciences, Faunus or otherwise, so there was little she could do to find an absolute cure for her flashbacks. However, she could see patterns in events and could correlate one instance with another to find some way to allay the memories, if only momentarily. But the ability to find and rationalize patterns took concentrated effort—something she was finding harder to allot time to during this summer break.

These thoughts proved able to distract Blake for a small amount of time, but her gaze was eventually drawn back to that black, hardcover book with the dead language embossed on its cover that sat still on the bed. She couldn't remove her gaze from her diary. Nothing about its text was necessarily graphic or horrifying—only opinions of the events of days far in the past existed on the journal's pages. However, these opinions were what brought back the memories. There is seldom an instance where an individual can look back on writings or opinions (Or in Blake's case, both.) of years prior without being filled with a sort of disgust and elitist pride. Blake looked back upon these first-person narrations as naïve, immature, and, most of all, haunting. So rapidly had her stance on the White Fang shifted from incredibly supportive to incredulously opposed that her personality before leaving could be considered entirely separate from her current personality. She certainly thought this way after reading those enthusiastic entries about successful "peace rallies" followed by the occasional unsuccessful protest entry which always brought about terrible memories.

In order to avoid any further flashbacks, Blake chose to move the book back into the nightstand beside her bed. She needed the book out of sight because she had felt the urge to return to the act of writing her opinions on recent events down. This summer, though only having spanned a total of four days, was unequivocally important to her and because of this, she felt the need to write her opinions in the same place where prior instances of importance had been noted. Unfortunately, her desire to write in this particular book made her feel obligated to read prior entries. Once she started reading, she couldn't stop until Yang intervened.

With her diary adequately concealed beneath the small library she had brought with her, Blake was able to refocus on Yang's recent offer. In hindsight, the invitation was surprising as she could not remember any point between now and earlier in the day when she had mentioned the fire pit. It was true that she would have liked to know of its existence and possible future usage, but she had not been proactive in seeking either of these. She guessed that Yang had seen her curious expression earlier, causing the blonde to believe that she had wanted to do something with the fire pit. Blake smirked. She couldn't believe how lucky she was to have Yang looking out for her best interests even if she, herself, did not completely know what they were.

Blake moved slowly off of her bed as to avoid any potential injury. Because time had moved relatively faster with the assistance of reading and the unfortunate burden of the visions, she was not prepared to learn from the clock placed atop her nightstand that she had been stationary for some three hours. She did not have much trouble standing besides the initial sensation of her legs having fallen asleep. But even this feeling quickly faded away as circulation was allowed by the change in position.

She opted for putting on her boots from a standing position rather than having to return to the bed where she had been sitting on for too long. Due to the numbness that lingered in her legs, it took a few attempts to correctly put on her shoes, but once she did, she was confident that she needed to get as far away from the spot of her previous reflection as possible.

The house was oddly quiet. She could guess that everybody else was already outside, but this notion did not make her feel any less alone. As she walked along the silent hallway, she found the lack of banter between Ruby and Weiss and the absence of Yang's warm presence to be eerie. However, the setting was somewhat peaceful in its own way. She could admire the quaint oddities of this place without feeling the guilt of its owners watching her—though, it is to say that she never found any of these idiosyncrasies off-putting by any means. The muted sounds of her own steps made Blake realize that she was completely in control of this silence. She could be as quiet or as loud as she wanted and she knew that the acoustics of the building would adhere to her actions alone. But she felt that even this power, as small and trivial as it was, needed to be shared with the other members of her team. She had accepted Yang's initial invitation to stay the summer with a thought of an always-active household on her mind. This currently silent and vacant home was something unfortunately different from what she had expected and only served to move her towards wherever the others were faster.

As she opened the front door, she felt the cooler climate created by the air conditioning within the house seep out into the humid summer night, rushing past her uncovered arms and legs and causing her to shiver slightly. However, this sensation ceased the moment Blake closed the front door, leaving only the evening's muggy, coastal heat. As she stood on the wooden porch in front of the sisters' home, she found herself gazing at a light in the distance—what must have been downtown Vale's lights—for but a moment before turning to head for the porch.

She had expected some sort of aggressive welcome from the local community of insects, but was surprised when the night turned out to be incredibly still. Neither gnat nor mosquito harassed her skin or revealed ears. There were no glowing fireflies flying about or any moths attacking the lights in front of the house. Something seemed to be keeping the insect population—or any other animal besides humans and Faunus—at bay. She assumed that the distinct scent of smoke that prevailed in the sisters' land kept the bugs from coming out and bothering her. She was immediately even more thankful for the fire than she already was despite having not yet seen it.

Unfortunately, Blake did not realize the important connection between the noticeably high humidity in the air and the preemptive shelter of the other animals in the woods.

As she turned the corner of the house, her sight was drawn to the soft, orange glow of a beginning fire and the three silhouettes that stood nearby. With something to focus her attention on, Blake began to hear certain aspects of the group's conversation. Nothing pertaining to topics of discussion or distinguishable words could be ascertained from what she heard, but the tones of voice coming from the different speakers were clearly audible from where she was. Ruby and Yang seemed to be happy about the fire and were unfazed by Weiss' attempts at reprimanding the blonde's actions of earlier in the day. Yang didn't seem the least bit bothered by the remarks, remaining incredibly perceptive to her surroundings. Blake was caught off guard as the shadowed figure of Yang turned towards her and waved, shouting, "Hey, Blake! Over here!"

Hearing that warm, welcoming voice once again made Blake subconsciously increase her walking speed so that she could be near her girlfriend again. She didn't miss the exchange between Yang and Weiss which consisted of the heiress telling the blonde to keep her voice down and Yang's subsequent dismissal of the plea. As Blake made her way along the dark porch towards the group, she could imagine the wide grin Yang had at this instant. She was sure that Weiss would have thought the blonde's overt happiness was caused by irrational pyromania, but Blake believed that her partner's audible happiness spawned from the same reason her own walking became so rapid.

Blake had to compose herself as she descended the stairs in order to keep some level of outward aloofness. Internally, she wanted nothing more than to sit by the fire with her girlfriend who, right now, was the only person in her life keeping her from falling back into her own memories. It had been a rough three hours; she just wanted to relax and she felt that Yang would understand this. The fire still seemed to be in its beginning stages, not having yet caught on to more than the top log of the stack of wood. When Blake had walked around the house's corner, she had seen both Yang and Ruby poking at the fire, urging it to consume the fuel provided. But now that she walked down the steps, she saw Ruby continuing her actions while Yang was smiling warmly and walking towards her.

"Hey," Yang said softly. The two had slowed to a stop so that they stood before each other, grinning.

"Hey," Blake replied in much the same tone, watching the lilac eyes for any hint of hesitation. As Yang had told her, she was there for her—there was no amount of trepidation or other anxiety found within the girl's eyes, proving to Blake that she was truly ready to help her with anything and everything.

"I'm glad you came out. I would have missed you if you kept on reading. It'd be like Beacon all over again." Her soft smile changed into a slight smirk. "And I don't think anybody would want that, would they?" Blake lightly chuckled as she shook her head. As she did so, Yang moved to her side and put an arm over her shoulder. The young Faunus leaned into the embrace as they moved towards the chairs around the fire.

"I wasn't that detached, was I?" Blake felt that she had been a bit too quiet towards her other teammates at times, but never felt that she had been overly distant. Still, she wanted to hear Yang's opinion anyways.

"Nah," Yang drawled. "You were just giving those books of yours more attention than me."

Underneath Yang's one-armed hold, Blake was able to nudge her girlfriend with an elbow. "That wouldn't have been a problem if you told me you were interested sooner." She couldn't suppress her own smirk.

"Well, I would have if I was sure you wouldn't reject me." Blake could practically hear Yang's facial features contorting to a comical grimace as she gulped. "Or worse." A chuckle couldn't suffice for the humor that Blake found in that additional statement. She giggled as she leaned closer into Yang, knowing that she wouldn't have harmed Yang for any reason at all. When she looked ahead, she saw two metal chairs just in front of her. "You know, Blake," she heard Yang begin, "it took me a while to figure you out, but once I did I—"

Blake desperately wanted to hear the rest of what Yang had to say, but unfortunately, Weiss had to interject. "Oh, get over yourselves," she groaned. "You know you're not the only ones here, right? Or did you forget that our plan was to start a fire and _then_ talk?" When Blake looked to where Weiss was, she found the heiress sitting on a chair opposite their own, glaring daggers at the two of them.

She felt a shift in the embrace and when Blake looked to the cause of the disruption, she saw Yang looking at her with a raised eyebrow that seemed to silently ask, "Really?" Blake simply rolled her eyes in response. There were only a few seconds of inactivity where Yang looked to be mulling something over before she gave a wink. "Just be patient, princess. There isn't much we can do to help the fire spread. Although," her grin widened, "I thought I heard somewhere that Dust does a _really_ good job of setting things on fire." Weiss' eyes widened as her jaw visibly clenched. "You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you? I'm just asking because you're the Dust expert around here."

Ruby, seeming to be blissfully unaware of what Yang had said, turned away from the fire and moved to seat herself in the chair beside Weiss. At this, the heiress' demeanor relatively softened, the impending scowl and scolding having become a look of exasperation. She sighed. "I'm never going to be able to live that down, am I?"

Though the question seemed to be rhetorical in its phrasing, Yang felt compelled to answer. "Not until you do something bigger. If you need any ideas, I was thinking that you could set the school on fire. Go big or go home, right?" Yang's mischievous grin widened as Weiss' anger visibly heightened. "Well, maybe arson would do both. You would go big and you'd be sent home. Win-win!"

Not only had Weiss taken on a look of barely contained fury, but Ruby to an extent as well; though, Blake could only notice this because of the duration of the gaze that came from the leader with a generally short attention span. Being underneath Yang's embrace, Blake felt that the glares her partner was receiving were in some way directed at her as well. This led to a series of rapid thoughts, all trying to find ways to get herself out of this situation. What she came up with was to pull Yang closer to their seats while carefully choosing her words to avoid mentioning the fact that she was trying to get Yang out of trouble. "Hey, let's sit down."

It seemed to work as Yang moved along with her towards the chairs. Unfortunately, she could not stop Yang from exclaiming, "But I never got to tell her how she could poison the school's water supply! That'd be better to make fun of than a weak forest fire."

The reason why this was more unfortunate for Blake than it was humorous was because this extra statement caused Weiss to speak up. "If you're done incriminating yourself and making me an accessory to the eventual crime you commit, take your seat." Begrudgingly, Yang did as she was told but not because of Weiss' command. Blake had all but pulled her girlfriend down into her seat, resulting in an eye-roll from the blonde that was an undisguised imitation of Blake's own. She would have laughed at this had Weiss not continued speaking. "I worked hard to get into that school and I will admit that the incident on initiation day was a mistake. However, if I am going to attend Beacon Academy and do as well as I would like to, I cannot have any more mistakes of that caliber associated with my name. I would advise you to stay quiet about that incursion or, at the very least, keep it between us."

Yang gave a short laugh. "You're acting like I've been going around telling everybody about it."

Blake raised an eyebrow at this. She knew that Yang was a fan of recalling this particular instance in the forest, even if she wasn't there in person to witness it. Blake thought that she would have told a great many people judging by the amount of times she had brought the topic up in one way or another. Weiss seemed to have similar thoughts; however, she seemed to be more vocal with them than Blake was. "What do you mean?" she asked.

"I've been keeping the story about the forest fire in-house." Blake lowered her eyebrow, remembering the majority of the times Yang had talked about the incident prior. Now that she mentioned it, there didn't seem to be many times where Yang openly talked about the fire to anyone besides those in their team. Perhaps there was a time when she told somebody in Team JNPR, but other than that, Yang didn't seem to be very open with that information around those not directly involved. Apparently, Weiss couldn't make this connection and gave the blonde an incredulous look. "I like making fun of you, Weiss, but I'm no monster. Whether you like it or not, I consider you a friend and as your friend, I'm not going to tell the world your secrets." Blake would have thought of this statement as comforting and sweet if Yang hadn't continued. "I'm just going to tell you your own secrets to make sure you understand that I know them."

This left an awkward silence to linger between the group, the only sound in the area being that of the crackling fire that existed only upon the top log of the pile. The statement was originally reassuring, yes, but the way that Yang had shaped it into what almost sounded like a threat made the other girls in the group unsure of how to react. Blake squeezed Yang's hand in a way that told her that she did a good job but in a way that she did not do good enough to receive verbal praise. Weiss' facial expression frequently shifted between annoyed, exasperated, and confused. She responded in a hesitant voice, "I was going to thank you, but now I don't know what I should do."

Ruby, meanwhile, had her attention trained once again on the fire pit in the middle of them. Blake saw out of the corner of her eye the sudden movement within the metal construct. The single log that sat atop the rest of the pile broke down the center, causing both halves and the fire attached to them to fall into the bottom of the pit. For a moment, the only light coming from the fire pit was of the plume of ashes and cinders released by the broken log, but after a few moments, fire began to spread to the logs directly above the flames. While the flame did not instantly engulf the pile, it did spread enough so that the previously dark patio became sufficiently illuminated and the awkward tension that existed between the group dissipated.

"So," Yang drawled, dismissing the inability of her other teammates to respond to her previous statement. Blake found Yang's arm coming to rest over her shoulders, causing her lean back into the limb. From where she sat, she could only just see Weiss' eyes above the fire—she was able to see the relative calm that had spread to her features. "How did you get into Beacon, anyway?" She then saw Weiss' gaze to form into a glare of sorts. Yang must have noticed this as well because she added, "I'm not making fun of you. Honestly, I'm just wondering. You said that you worked hard to get into Beacon and I'm pretty sure that you of all people wouldn't call bribing the school 'hard work.'"

However, this amendment did not cause Weiss' look to soften. "Are you implying that I habitually bribe people?" She didn't seem as though she was angry—Blake knew what an irate Weiss looked like after the first few days she had attended the academy. This was a look of annoyance; rather, exasperation at a repeated stereotype she had become associated with. Blake was intimately familiar with this sort of look.

Yang shrugged. "All I know is that when we couldn't get a seat at Flaherty's, you just walked in and suddenly we had a table." Blake felt as though Yang was unwittingly instigating an argument, but she wouldn't do anything about it. Wanting to reduce the amount of conflict that existed in her life if only by a marginal percent, the young Faunus had the urge to halt Yang's speech even though it had already ceased. Unfortunately, she could tell that Yang was sincere in her stated curiosity. There was not a hint of malice in her tone, simply unintentional disrespect.

Rather than the expected reprimand from the girl in white, Weiss rubbed the bridge of her nose and sighed, looking over to the girl beside her out of the corner of her eye. "Yang, I didn't bribe anyone in the restaurant." Judging by the shift in Yang's position, Blake was sure that her partner was about to request some sort of elaboration, but couldn't due to Weiss' proactivity in supplying a further explanation. "I did, however, tell them that they were waiting on a member of the Schnee family."

Yang went back to her regular, reclined position, seemingly sated in her curiosity. Be it a show of gratitude to Yang for ceasing her accidentally rude inquiries or her own cynical desire to move as far away from the lingering pain of the visions, Blake pulled her chair closer to Yang's, closing the infinitesimal distance that already existed between them. She wanted to shut her eyes, relax by the fire, and forget about everything that could possibly cause stress. Once again, this event by the fire that was intended on being relaxing evaded its original purpose. "And," Weiss sighed, bringing the attention of Blake and Yang back to her, "I might have threatened them to an extent." Blake was able to feel her girlfriend's position change as her head shot up to look at Weiss. The heiress sighed once again, obviously unhappy with what she had done. "I told them that it would be in poor form to deny a customer who could potentially run them out of business at a moment's notice."

Ruby, who had been so entranced by the growing flame that she looked to have not been paying attention, finally perked up at this confession. "Seriously?" she asked. Blake didn't have to look across the fire to know that the young girl's eyes had widened in surprise. However, the Faunus did open her eyes to see Weiss' reaction. She had frowned and tilted her head so it could rest on her arm that had been propped on the chair's armrest.

Unlike her sister's relatively calm and concerned reaction, Yang cheered, "All right, Weiss!" The outburst had been so unexpected by everybody else that it startled even the contrite Weiss and the stoic, reserved Blake. Something about this response made Blake think that it was not Yang reacting impulsively. The shift in Weiss' demeanor from regretful to bewildered was not missed and allowed Blake to rationalize her partner's exclamation as purposefully disarming. The exclamation of her name by Ruby did not dissuade the blonde from continuing. "I knew you had it in you! Show 'em who's boss and don't take 'no' for an answer! I knew there was a reason I tolerate you."

Blake smiled. Though the other two might not have seen it, Yang was watching Weiss intently, making sure that she had remedied the problem plaguing the heiress—Ruby may have, but judging by the frequent, worried glances she gave to Weiss, she had not. For the briefest of moments, Weiss' expression looked to hint at happiness, but this was quickly masked by over-exaggerated façades of indignation and annoyance. Although, if one were to look close enough as Blake did, one would see a very faint smirk that was equally as unwanted by the heiress as it was amused. "Oh, so you tolerate me. Is that it?" This uncharacteristic quip from Weiss only served to betray her appearance of composure, but Blake doubted the audacious manner of speech was an accident.

It was apparent that Yang thought much the same. "Yeah, I think 'tolerate' fits pretty well for what I was going for." Blake felt Yang softly shake her shoulder with the arm that she had been leaning on. "What do you think? 'Tolerate' works well here, right?" Incredibly amused with the conversation but not wanting to be subjected to any potential anger from either party, she simply smiled and shrugged. "See?" Yang looked back to Weiss. "Even she agrees with me. And she _reads_!"

"And that's implying that you don't?" Weiss returned.

"Pffft. Not if I can avoid it."

Ruby, though a bit late with her response, finally adjusted to the flow of the conversation, no longer worried about Weiss' feelings that seemed unfazed. "And that's not fair, using Blake as your backup. Of course she's going to agree with you. She's your girlfriend!"

While Blake was comfortable with her relationship with Yang, hearing Ruby remark on it in such a matter-of-fact way made heat rise to the young Faunus' cheeks. Fortunately, Yang was there to take the group's focus off of her. "You're right that she's my girlfriend. She's the best girlfriend in the world and backs me up whenever I need help. There's nothing unfair about Blake being the best girlfriend ever." Unfortunately, as much as Blake adored the blonde's sunny attitude, the brawler's inclination towards compliments only exacerbated the blush. "Besides," she began again, "you don't see me complaining when you try to get Weiss to back you up."

Due to the orange glow cast on the faces of those sitting around the fire on this notably cloudy night, any sign of a blush or other coloration to one's facial features could not be seen. However, Blake didn't need to see any red tint to know that the two girls opposite herself were flustered. Between Weiss breaking her perfect posture by crossing her arms and slumping into her chair and Ruby's wide-eyed petrification followed by an exclamation of "W-We're not dating!", Blake was fairly certain that Yang had rendered the two speechless.

Yang had stated on many occasions that teasing her sister and Weiss was an incredibly enjoyable experience—especially so if she could tease them both simultaneously. This meant that the blonde would not show mercy. "I know you're not." This seemed to ease the embarrassment on the parts of Ruby and Weiss for a moment, but Blake knew better. "You two can't even get through a conversation anymore without fumbling over your words or getting angry at each other before running away. I don't expect you to be dating because I know you're too afraid to." She added, "Chickens."

That was a challenge if Blake had ever heard one. It was as if the two girls on the other side of the fire became frozen in time, unmoving from their already flustered state. Slowly, gradually, at an agonizingly-sluggish pace, Ruby and Weiss' respective eyes shifted from gawking at Yang to looking in directions opposite each other. Blake knew that the response only confirmed Yang's statement, causing the toothy grin that now adorned the blonde's features, but perhaps the teasing had gone too far.

The current reaction, although expected and humorous, looked to be a true point of embarrassment for the other partnership. In her own relationship, Blake knew that Yang wouldn't react in such a way whatsoever and that her own reaction would not be as severe as this. But they were not Ruby and Weiss—similar in some regards, perhaps, but never the same. This is why she leaned into Yang to get her attention before giving her a pleading look that silently asked to rectify the situation.

To Yang's credit, her ability to be quick-witted in a conversation proved to be exceptionally efficient in calming the other two down. "By the way, Weiss, you never really answered my question." The statement disarmed her previous challenge and was said so nonchalantly that it both impressed Blake and brought back Weiss' attention in the form of a wary, yet curious raise of an eyebrow. "You know," Yang implored, "'How'd you get into Beacon and stuff?'"

Weiss, having still not completely recovered from the previous degrees of flustered that she had found herself in, cleared her throat in an attempt to compose herself. She began, "How I was accepted into Beacon is not anything particularly extraordinary." This garnered a flat, goading look from Yang. She sighed. "All right, if you must know, I had to request an evaluation because I did not attend a previous combat school. When the representative from the academy came for the evaluation, I was asked a series of questions about my combat style and then was given the opportunity to prove myself. Needless to say, I passed."

Once again, the only sound on the patio came from the crackling fire, the other three girls waiting expectantly for any sort of elaboration. It quickly became apparent that there would be no such explanation, causing Yang to ask, "Is that it?"

"Yeah," Ruby chimed in, "you didn't tell us anything about the test. Was it hard? What happened?"

"Of course it wasn't hard!" Immediately after saying this, Weiss caught herself, changing her expression quickly from irritated to incredibly calm and neutral. She looked to Ruby and quickly said, "I apologize for my outburst. It was out of turn." She then turned back towards the partnership opposite herself, adopting the same disinterested look as before. "To answer her second question, he seemed to give a fairly standard test of my combat abilities. This was then followed by more specialized tests to gauge my semblance and competence with a sword. Nothing was out of the ordinary. There really is not much to tell."

"Huh," Yang began, "I never would have expected Weiss Schnee of all people to turn down the chance to brag about herself." Blake sighed. She thought that Yang would have ceased her teasing remarks after Weiss proved that she was willing to be compliant.

"Will you stop?" Apparently, Weiss held similar sentiments. The glare the heiress sent seemed to pacify the blonde. However, this glare did not falter even after Yang finished her flagrant roll of the eyes. "If you're not satisfied with my answer, why don't you regale us with your own tale of how you fought your way into Beacon?"

While Blake felt that Weiss was justified in her annoyance with Yang to some degree, it would be wrong to say that the young Faunus did not want to reprimand the girl in white for the way she had responded to her girlfriend. But, once again, Yang was there to keep Blake from saying something she would have regretted. "Fine," Yang shrugged. "I guess I deserve it after the stuff I put you two through today." Even with her acceptance of what was perceived as punishment, Yang was still able to incite a glare from her sister and an ever harsher scowl from Weiss at the mention of the incident earlier in the day.

"Never mention that again," Weiss growled.

Ruby shook her head, never disengaging eye contact with her sister. "Never ever. You're a heavy sleeper. If you talk about it again, that'll be the end of your hair."

Even Blake had to admit that the threat from Ruby was intimidating. The thought alone of Ruby's competence wielding the sharp blade of Crescent Rose was disconcerting now. Suddenly, it was Yang's turn to be speechless, her eyes having widened considerably at the statement. "Uhh," she began, "I was only kidding?" This didn't have any effect on the expressions of either girl. She tried laughing nervously and still didn't get a response. "Should I answer the question?" Blake figured it was all Yang could think of for a response that was within the bounds of her natural repertoire of conversational distractions. Ruby slightly and slowly nodded her head—an incredibly menacing and bone-chillingly out-of-character sight to say the least.

"Well," Yang began hesitantly, "it really wasn't anything special." The glares from the two girls told her to keep going. "I mean, all I did was pass my finals and they let me in." The severe looks from the opposite partnership did not cease. The unresponsiveness of the duo caused Yang to become so uncomfortable that it seemed to have allowed for the following outburst. "What do you want from me? I graduated from Signal! Everybody who goes there ends up at Beacon anyway!"

Every second that passed by in silence seemed to increase the desperation in Yang's plea of unimportance exponentially, or so it seemed to the young Faunus. Soon after Yang's rise in volume, a charred log in the fire pit crumbled, spitting embers and ashes into the obscured sky. Blake had feared that this would have acted as a trigger—a trigger that could unleashed the barely contained anger of Weiss and the uncharacteristic annoyance of Ruby. However, this occurrence seemed to have the polar opposite effect on the group. At the sound of the crumbling, Yang and Ruby burst into laughter while Weiss sat back in her seat with a genuinely happy smirk gracing her visage. To say Blake was confused would be an understatement.

"Way to go Weiss!" Yang managed to cheer in between bouts of laughter.

Ruby gave Weiss one of the widest smiles Blake had ever seen on the young leader. "Yeah! I never knew you were such an awesome actor." Blake felt lost. "I almost believed you were mad at Yang for a second there." Blake had to ask herself if they really looked angry. From what she remembered, they did, but the statement that they weren't utterly confounded her.

"You have to pull inspiration from somewhere." Weiss' dismissive and seemingly flippant response made Yang begin laughing even harder and caused Blake to knit her brows.

Now that they mentioned it, they did seem different after Yang's reference to how she found the two on the couch earlier. While Weiss did seem angry—enough to make the young Faunus believe that she actually was—she didn't react how Blake thought she would. She expected instant scolding and the conversation to erupt into a veritable yelling match. However, the fact that these were contradicted with laughter at an inside joke that she had been unaware of made her feel out of the loop and admittedly not as intelligent as she believed she was.

With her expression being a mix of both confusion and disappointment in herself, Blake subconsciously nestled closer into the warmth of the figure beside her as she watched the flames in an attempt to rid her mind of these negative thoughts. She barely felt Yang shift her position so that she could look at the Faunus' reaction. While she tried not to focus on anything else in the area, Blake noticed that Yang's exuberant, rejuvenating laughter had ceased. She moved away just enough so that she could look up and observe Yang's expression while still being surrounded by the safety of the blonde's hold. With a single glance into the lilac orbs of Yang, Blake saw the same emotions she was feeling now afflicting her girlfriend as well. However, uncertainty and self-depreciation paled in severity to the amount of worry that was communicated through Yang's unwavering gaze.

Blake did believe that the concern shown was absolutely heart-warming, but she felt that the amount shown was hindering Yang's evening. She tried her best to smile—or at the very least, smirk—to appease the blonde, but her efforts did not achieve the desired result. However, it is not to say that Blake disliked the resulting action. What had been merely an arm draped over Blake's shoulder became a one-armed hug that was otherwise unnoticeable to the other two at the fire. The girl in black quickly gave up on her attempts to pacify the blonde's concern, easing into the hold and silently thanking her for being there and keeping the action low-key.

In a matter of seconds, Ruby's laughter became infrequent snickers. Just as Blake was about to dismiss the entire situation as a simple lapse in awareness, a question was posed—one that would unintentionally keep Blake quiet and disappointed in herself. "Hey, Blake?" Ruby asked. "How'd you get into Beacon? I don't remember you saying where you went before you got in."

Ruby did not intend on causing Blake to recall more painful memories than she already had. Blake knew this, but was still affected by the insignificant question. Rather than thinking ahead for a diplomatic manner of dismissing the question, Blake attempted to speak first. However, between the uncertainty she had for how she could possibly respond and the fact that her voice had come to fail her after a period of inactivity, all she could respond with was a weak, "Umm." While it sounded as though she was going to elaborate, she did not intend on doing so. She was not particularly proud of how she had gotten accepted into the academy. With this added to the prior bout of disappointment in herself for not being part of the group, she honestly did not feel like talking.

Fortunately, Yang was there to save the day. "Hey, can we stop talking about school for a second? My head's starting to hurt from thinking about it again." Though Yang had a playful expression of feigned agony directed at Ruby, the serious gaze she was sending Weiss was not missed. Blake couldn't begin to guess what that look asked of the heiress, but she was preemptively thankful anyways if it proved to be even the least bit helpful in allowing her to avoid a question about her unsavory past.

"As much as I hate to admit it, Yang is right." Weiss, keeping an expertly calm expression, turned to Ruby. "Can we find something else to discuss?" Though the two of them might have had their differences in the past, Blake made a mental note that she would have to thank Weiss later for her diversion. Because her head was leaning against Yang and thusly caused her sight to be at an angle, Blake was barely able to see the pained, contemplative expression that Ruby held as she tried to find a new topic of conversation.

This thoughtful demeanor was quickly replaced with a grin very much similar to one of Yang's signature mischievous expressions. As Ruby tilted her head back up to look towards her sister, Yang tensed. Blake found her partner only just calm enough to seem happy and content, but the fact that the hug she had been giving had become a sort of death grip, Blake was almost certain Yang was scared of something. "No," the blonde said in a stern, reprimanding voice.

Ruby, however, was completely unfazed. "What?" she asked in a patronizingly sweet tone. "I was just going to say that I need to get some more polish for Crescent Rose. Maybe order some more ammo while I'm at it." While Blake had been unsure earlier in the day of her ability to read others, she knew without a doubt that Ruby was lying in this instance. Between the singsong voice which the young leader used to detail her plan and the hard glare that Yang was shooting her, Blake was positive that ulterior motives were in play.

Apparently, Weiss thought the same. "What is going on between you two?"

Yang didn't bother taking her gaze off of her sister to look at the heiress, choosing instead to curtly state, "Nothing," while continuing her glare. This caused Weiss to grind her teeth in frustration for some odd reason.

"Oh!" Ruby gasped, creating a blatant, false tone of surprise. "So, you don't want me to tell—"

Whether it was because Yang felt that a more intimidating posture was required for her denial or if it was due to the fact that her body temperature began to skyrocket alongside her level of anger and she became conscious of it, the blonde released Blake from her hold. Ruby was cut off by Yang with another quick, "No." This time, however, the response seemed much more defensive and almost panicked to an extent.

Blake had seen Yang distressed , overwhelmed, and in various stages of negativity—albeit only for brief periods of time—yet "panicked" was not a word she would normally use to describe the exuberant youth. But there was nothing normal about the way Yang was trying to truncate this conversation. It was evident that she was keeping a secret and Blake would have been fine with this, seeing as how she and Ruby spoke about the issue as though it was an inside joke. However, Yang was not merely keeping a secret, she was enforcing the fact that it was a secret. This is what caused the inquisitive look from Blake and the subsequent, appeasing touch of a hand that began to calm Yang.

"Fine," Ruby dismissed in a way oddly reminiscent of an exasperated Weiss. "Then I won't say what I need to get, but I need to get some _stuff_ downtown." Yang's scowl became more cautionary, just awaiting any stimulus to bring it back to its previous levels of anger. This response from Ruby and reaction from Yang caught Blake's interest. Before, she was content to let whatever was going on between the two of them go as it seemed to be a matter pertaining to their family if she had to guess. Now she was intrigued as to what could cause this drastic change in personality. "Does anybody want to go tomorrow? I kinda want to get it out of the way before it's too late." Her emphasis on "before it's too late" caused Yang's look to harden once again—something Blake took note of.

This was the opportunity she needed. She nudged Yang with her elbow, causing the heated expression to cool and form into a single raised eyebrow at the Faunus. Blake did her best to send a hopeful smile towards the figure beside her, silently asking if they could go. Despite the crowds and the intermittent anguish of their last trip, there was something about the trip that Blake believed to have caused her and Yang to grow closer. She wanted to replicate this experience as best she could, but at the same time, she wanted to figure out why Yang seemed so hesitant at the mention of another trip.

Blake found Yang's visage to droop in resignation for a fraction of a second before it was replaced with a sunny smile. "All right," she drawled, "you don't have to tell me twice." It would have seemed to her awkward in this instance to laugh aloud at Yang's reaction and teasing, so she instead smiled and shook her head as she leaned into the warm body beside her.

"If everyone else is going, I might as well come too." Weiss, who, much like Blake, would have normally preferred peaceful solitude over being around loquacious others prior to this break from school, seemed relatively calm and level-headed. Perhaps her view on what could be considered enjoyable had changed. Blake certainly hoped this was the case, for the unrestrained happiness now emanating from Ruby's smile was something that needed to be more common. But this smile, in this particular instance, could not last. "I've read about an art exhibit here in Vale that I wish to attend. Though I've had the chance to attend before, I think now is an acceptable time to follow through with it. We _are_ supposed to be enjoying ourselves, after all."

With a piteous, crestfallen gasp of "What?", Ruby became less than enthusiastic about her devised plan of heading into the city once again. "How can you have fun while looking at a bunch of pictures?" Blake did not miss the smug look Yang had but choose not to reprimand her for it.

Weiss, on the other hand, chose to reprimand Ruby for her reaction. "Oh, I'm sorry that there won't be anything for you to shoot while we're there. It just so happens that I like the quiet sometimes. Perhaps you could learn a thing or two from that. Until then, you will just have to gain an appreciation for the arts because you are coming with me." Between the sarcasm and the command, Blake believed that Weiss' reaction had been slightly excessive once again. But at the same time, she could sympathize with the heiress. Had Yang acted in a similar way to her request to go to the book store during their last trip, she might have acted in the same way.

Ruby groaned. What had been expected from the youngest of the group was an argument. This was the case because Blake reasoned that since she had argued earlier in the day, some amount of that animosity might still linger. However, every member of the team was surprised when Ruby said, "Fine, I'll go."

Weiss was the first to regain her composure. "Then it's settled. We will head into town tomorrow. Ruby and I will head to the art exhibit as well as take care of any errands she needs to—"

"Wait," Yang interrupted, much to the chagrin of the speaker. "Ruby, are you sure you want to go to that thing? I thought you hated museums."

Wide-eyed and sufficiently caught off-guard, Ruby began the rapid process of conversational damage control. "No! Of course not!" she assured. "When have I ever said that? I don't remember saying that. Maybe I don't remember because I was too young to!" She began to nervously laugh, causing Weiss' expression to sour in annoyance. Seeing this, Ruby tried a different method of rectifying the situation. "Weiss, I'd love to go with you to the—I mean, I'd enjoy going to the art show with you!" While Ruby was blushing through her attempt at a confident visage, Weiss seemed even more annoyed than usual.

Blake was torn between believing that this Freudian slip was intended or if Ruby was being overly conscious of everything she said when around Weiss. Honestly, she believed it to be a bit of both, but would not judge her leader's awkward attempts at being amiable towards her partner. Blake was in no place to judge either way. Whether she liked it or not, she still felt that she, herself, was still incredibly awkward when around Yang. As Blake was not one to be hypocritical, she simply smiled at the bumbling spectacle not out of malicious mirth, but out of empathy.

Rarely did Weiss seem to stray from phrasings and diction considered formal and proper; however, the uncharacteristic drawl of "Okay," could be overlooked just this once as the situation seemed to be difficult for her to deal with. "Anyways," she began, backtracking to before Yang's interjection, "Ruby and I will go to the art exhibit and run the errand that she needs taken care of. Do you two have anything planned or will you be accompanying us?"

Something about the way Weiss asked this made Blake feel as though the heiress was hoping that her answer would allow the two of them some form of privacy. Of course, this rationalization could have spawned from the fact that she had found the two sleeping against each other earlier in the day as well as the multiple, small instances during this fireside discussion that indicated their infatuation towards each other. Yet her suspicions were confirmed through the brief, relieved smile that Weiss had after Yang said, "Yeah, we've got some stuff planned. I told Blake I'd show her around—take her sightseeing and all." Though she had never asked about sightseeing in particular, Blake was fine with Yang's explanation that would vouch for her own motives for going to Vale again.

"Well, I guess it's settled then," Ruby stated in a tone so distant from her previously alarmed state that Blake humored the thought that that the panic was again but an act. "So, when do we wanna go tomorrow? I'm thinking noon is a good time. Who's up for it?"

Blake approved of the idea because it only created more similarities between their first trip and this next one. She also believed that Yang would be fine with this decision due to her affinity for sleep. Weiss, however, objected. "If we want to go to the art exhibit, we will need to leave fairly early. I'd say between eight and nine."

"What?" Yang exclaimed. It seemed as though Blake's assumption about the blonde's preferred time of departure was correct.

Weiss scoffed. "Ruby and I need to leave early if we want to get into the exhibit. If we leave at noon, we will be lucky if we able to get inside by seven." She looked to her partner. "Are you willing to leave early?"

"S-sure," Ruby stammered.

"Either way," Weiss continued, "if you aren't willing to wake up early enough, you have that thing—that motorbike—"

"Bumblebee," Yang corrected.

Blake watched as Weiss silently looked at Yang, visibly annoyed and presumably wondering if she was being serious. The Faunus knew her girlfriend was adamant about the name of her vehicle, but Weiss didn't seem like the sort of person who would name an inanimate object—in fact, she couldn't remember a time when the heiress referred to her sword as Myrtenaster outside of being asked its name. "No," Weiss said simply. "I'm not calling it that. Whatever _you_ want to call it, you can take it into the city if you can't wake up in time to leave." Yang made a show of rolling her eyes but not disagreeing. This, to Blake, was a great show of self-restraint on Yang's part; she could see the blonde arguing the semantics of her bike's name to no end, so this was a welcome result. Weiss huffed. "I'm glad we're in agreement, then."

A noncommittal hum came from the sisters. This was followed by silence that was only broken by the crackling of the diminishing wood in the fire. With every team member's nerves calmed by the lack of conversation and accompanying arguments, they could simply watch the fire like they had originally intended on doing. Ruby and Weiss reclined in their respective seats, the heiress letting out an unfettered, content sigh while the young leader grinned widely as she watched the flame's erratic motions. The warmth around Blake seemed to intensify comfortably as Yang's undivided attention was focused solely on her.

Blake found that Yang began to lean against her, moving so that their heads were nearly level with each other. "Hey," Yang whispered. When she looked to her partner, she found the blonde to have a slight smile on her face. "Sorry that I didn't ask for your opinion on what we're doing tomorrow. Is there something you want to do instead? I mean, looking at buildings might get a little old after a while."

Blake's answer would have been in the negative had she felt the need to speak at all. Because both the figure and the fire were so warm and because she felt at ease around everyone else due in large to Yang's unnecessary apology, Blake felt as though she could just lean against Yang and doze off. To answer her question, however, Blake shrugged, earning a short laugh from the blonde. "I know you like to keep to yourself, but this has to be a record—even for you." Blake rolled her eyes at the comment. She had nothing to say; rather, she felt that there wasn't anything she wanted to say. She was happy with the way things were and felt as though talking would ruin the serenity of the moment. However, Yang's speech seemed to only improve the situation. The warm figure hummed a low, content note that resonated throughout Blake's form and almost put her to sleep.

Blake's unhindered, unrestrained Faunus ears twitched at something that was coming. Whatever was coming, however, she could not guess.

The reason why it is stated that Blake almost fell asleep is because a certain white-haired girl, in her uncharacteristic, placated daze, asked a question that caused Yang to quickly sit up in her seat and Ruby to become momentarily paralyzed. "Ruby," she began, "if you don't mind me asking, how did you two get this house? It doesn't seem as though two students with no visible records of employment could afford a plot of land this large on the fringes of the capital." While Blake could understand why such a question would otherwise be perceived as ill-mannered, Weiss' genuine curiosity came across expressly. But even the expressions of Yang and Ruby were far beyond standard reactions to any ill-mannered question.

Because Ruby had been asked the question, she had to be the one who answered. Unfortunately, in her disabled state, all she could say was "Umm…"

This caused both Weiss and Blake to sit up, both for different reasons. Blake had to sit up lest she fall behind her partner's form due to her now sitting on the edge of her seat. Weiss distanced herself from the back of her chair, her visage forming into a concerned expression that rivaled Yang's own with a noticeable amount of self-loathing introspection occurring within her mind. Instead of going on the defensive or quickly ending the conversation like Blake thought she would have, Yang sighed. "Don't worry, Weiss," she began, "the story behind it is a bit of a downer and Ruby was probably hit the hardest by it."

Because the fire obscured Weiss and Ruby midway past their torsos, Blake was only able to see Weiss' eyes widen for a second before her visage hardened and she moved her arm to do something. Whatever action she did, Blake could not see. What she could see was Ruby's expression becoming frozen for a moment before softening to the point where she was able to give a faint smile to the heiress.

"Honestly, I've been expecting one of you to ask that since we got here. I still don't think I was ready for it, but I'll try to explain as best as I can." Ruby's eyes closed and her head sunk in a small form of bow. Whatever was going on, Blake felt the mood of this friendly chat by the fire had suddenly changed into one that she had experienced only once before with the blonde.

Back in the park's alcove, when she first asked the blonde whether or not she agreed with the prospect of them dating, Yang became incredibly reflective and uncharacteristically vulnerable on an emotional level, similar to how she was becoming by the fire. Looking back on this instance, Blake called upon her memories of how she was able to allay some of the negativity that afflicted Yang. She moved her hand over Yang's, causing the blonde to smile softly.

She took a deep breath. "Okay," she began, causing Ruby to visibly tense and Weiss to look over at her. "So, we've lived here since we were kids. Back then, we lived with mom and dad." Her voice hitched just before the last three words, halting her speech immediately after the sentence. Unfortunately, her reaction was relatively tame compared to Ruby's response. The girl had slowly brought her legs up into her chair so that she could shrink into as small a ball as possible as she buried her face in her knees. She wasn't crying—rather, she wasn't sobbing, for Blake could not hear any noise coming from the normally chipper leader.

Blake squeezed Yang's hand, hoping that it would silently convey the message that she was there for her. It seemed as though it worked to some extent, but she knew all too well that memories, after being repressed and kept a secret for too long, can decimate whatever visage of stoicism and calm that are attempted once they are brought into the light be it for better or worse. In Yang's case, Blake could just see with her augmented sight that the normally cheerful, lilac eyes were becoming subject to tears.

"Yang," Weiss began, appropriately cautious for the situation, "you don't have to answer if you don't want to. I can understand if it's a sore subject."

"No," Yang sighed. "You two," she looked to Blake, "deserve answers." She took another deep breath and seemed to wipe a tear from her eye that either didn't exist or was so minute that Blake had not noticed it. "I won't go into the specifics of what happened," the hitching in her voice became a very common occurrence, "but I'll just say that after what happened, Ruby and me inherited the house. We got everything that mom and dad owned through the will and have been living here since."

Enough was enough. Blake pulled Yang into a sideways hug of her own, cradling the blonde head just underneath her chin so that she could ward off any negativity once more. But Yang was strong; she didn't—couldn't—cry while her sister was present. As Blake rubbed her partner's arm, Yang sighed. "Maybe we're acting a little childish. I mean, it's been a few years now. We should be able to get over it, but…" However, she didn't have the means to finish the sentence.

With Weiss being the member of the group sworn to efficiency and lacking in sympathy and with Ruby still curled up in her defensive ball, Blake knew that there was only one person left to console Yang. She tried to speak, but after going so long without using her voice, she was only able to get out a single, slightly raspy, "It's all right."

Though she was not confident in what she said, feeling as though it could have been more effective, Yang reacted positively, moving closer to the young Faunus at the words. While Blake might have argued against it, Yang continued speaking with a cadence no longer indicative of distress. "The reason why we're able to keep it is because we have an uncle who teaches at Signal. Because he basically lives at the school, he agreed to take care of any payments on the house until we graduate from Beacon. After that, he said he'd help a little bit, but not as much."

There was a definite solemnity behind Yang's tone, but her manner of speech seemed to show moderately rapid recovery on her part. Ruby remained in her paralyzed state, having all of Weiss' attention focused on her. She looked to be recovering as well, but much more slowly and subtly than Yang was. If Blake had to guess how she was recovering, she would guess that it was due to whatever Weiss had done with her hand earlier. She had the sneaking suspicion that this was Weiss holding the leader's hand through the painful memories, but she chose not to remark on this for their sake. Though telling Yang about the supposed action could expedite her return to normalcy, it would only worsen the night for the other partnership through Yang's inevitable teasing.

There was something wrong with the air—in the slightest change in air pressure and charge that the Faunus could only just feel. What the cause of this was could not be ascertained, yet Blake's ears twitched nonetheless. She had believed that her previous reaction spawned from the recent conversation, but the fact that her ears twitched again when there wasn't anyone in the group who wished to speak was odd to say the least. What was even more strange was that she knew this feeling in the air somehow. What it came from or why she knew it was beyond her current comprehension.

Yang nuzzled closer, shaking Blake from her thoughts. The Faunus was able to smile softly at the happy expression on her partner's face. When she looked over towards Weiss and Ruby, she found that the previously shaken girl was now jovially conversing with her own partner. The sudden shift in mood caused Blake to question whether or not the previous conversation happened or not—whether or not this was all a figment of her traumatized imagination. It is to say that the conversation that brought about those unfortunate memories did, in fact, occur and that the true cause for the shift in mood was the sisters' signature optimism and positivity shining through in times of great distress.

All was right with the group for the time being with their uncomfortable sentiments and jarring memories buried well beneath the surface of their content demeanors. However, a small shiver from Yang acted as a prelude for what was to come. This shiver was so subtle that it could not have been noticed by either Ruby or Weiss. Blake, on the other hand, was close enough to have felt it. When she looked to her partner, she found that she, too, had a similarly confused expression. "What was that?" the blonde asked. "It felt like something fell on me."

Blake's ears involuntarily flicked again, forewarning what was to come.

It was then that Ruby flinched. "Did anybody else feel that?" Weiss looked at her as though the young leader was simply imagining things when she reacted to whatever the stimulation was as well. "Weiss?" Ruby asked. "Did you feel it too?"

Before Blake could ask what it was they were talking about, she felt something land on her sleeveless shoulder and begin rolling down her arm. Instantly, she knew what it was that had bothered them. "Huh," she hummed, both in wonderment and as an attempt to get her voice back, "I guess it's raining."

It did not take long at all for those four drops to become a few more and for those few more to become many more. Before long, the four were caught outside in the beginnings of what seemed to be a simple rainstorm. "Yang!" Ruby shouted. "Why did you pick tonight to have the fire?"

All members of Team RWBY were in various states of shock as to how they could react in this new weather. Instinctually, Yang pulled her jacket off and held it above herself so that her hair could not get wet. "How was I supposed to know it was going to rain?"

Weiss' plea of "Can we just get inside?" was ignored by the sisters while they continued their argument.

"Did you even look at the sky?"

"Yeah! There wasn't a cloud as far as I could see! It didn't look like it was going to rain!"

"Well you should have looked harder!"

"That doesn't even make sense!"

"Can you two just shut up and get out of the rain?" Weiss, as outwardly caring and selflessly benevolent as she usually was, yelled this at the bickering sisters as she bolted up the stairs and underneath the very slight awning created by the house's rain gutter. There were no grumbles of disappointment following this order. Yang, unsurprisingly, was unable to complete the task before Ruby could. For a moment, the leader's eyes opened in sheepish realization before she disappeared in a flurry of rose petals that shimmered in the pouring rain. It was not a second after she disappeared that the sound of the front door closing resounded throughout the area, followed by Weiss' exasperated shout of, "Ruby!"

Blake, lacking her bow, had to force her ears down against her head so that she could avoid rain getting in them. This created an odd auditory sensation. On one hand, she could clearly hear the incessant pattering of the weather against already forming pools through her human ears, while to her Faunus ears that were effectively sealed, it sounded as if she was indoors already and hearing the storm through the roof. Unfortunately, this made the normally enjoyable pitch of Yang's voice sound uncomfortable. "Come on!" she barely heard her yell. Nevertheless, she hurried along beside Yang up to the house.

She was not surprised to see Weiss nearly panicking because of the rain making her hair wet. Much like Yang, she seemed to be somewhat vain when it came to her hair. In actuality, Blake thought that Weiss was incredibly vain when it came to her hair and clothing, but for the sake of comparison and not insulting her girlfriend, she could be said to be somewhat vain. Honestly, Blake didn't understand their aversion to rain. Other than when it got in her ears, she quite enjoyed the rain. In a way, she considered it to be universally humbling, bringing everyone under its influence into a more reserved mood. If she had the choice, she would have wanted to stand outside for a little while longer. Unfortunately, it was not the rain that halted these thoughts.

Preemptively, Blake's Faunus traits flattened themselves even further against her head to protect against the coming sound. She had been automatically following her girlfriend when a resonating boom rang through the air. This sound only caused the blonde figure to speed up but caused the raven-haired girl to become immobile. At the sounding of this noise, what had been a tolerable rainstorm instantly became a torrential downpour, soaking Blake entirely.

She couldn't move. That sound made her remember. That sound could be louder—will be louder. That sound was horrible. That sound was mortifying. That sound was death.

"Blake!"

And yet she couldn't save them. She didn't know their names and even if they were shouting them at her so that she could remember, she couldn't hear them over that blasted noise.

"Blake!"

There were so many coming after her—a veritable sea of humanity as far as she was concerned. And all she could do was wait. She could only stand in place and wait for what was to come. It was justified; truly it would be, for she had been a coward.

"Blake! Come on!"

What was the point in running? If she did, then the sound would only break her again, allowing them to catch her. Maybe if she stood still and waited for swift justice, she would be less of a coward for just a moment.

Yang growled. "All right. If that's the way it's gonna be." Her voice was closer now, but Blake couldn't hear, her mind being too focused on the thunder that had only sounded once. She was shaken from her unfortunate memories by her body being moved, not by herself by another. Yang had taken the initiative by lifting her off of the ground. Normally, Blake would protest due to the lack of control, but she was in no such state to do so now. Instead, she subconsciously threw her arms around Yang's neck as she was moved along the porch in a form of bridal carry.

As the lights of the front of the house came into her blurred vision, Blake was able to return to the realm of reality. She barely noticed the front door coming into view before it was pushed open and she was brought through. When she was finally out of the rain, her senses came back to her in full. However, this recovery coincided with Yang setting her down. In this way, her partner angled her so that Blake could stand on her own without removing the arms from her neck. The young Faunus, having her senses shocked in light of the numerous events that happened only seconds prior, found herself wrapped in a hug by the warm and oddly dry figure. "Blake, what happened out there?"

Instead of answering her partner verbally, she returned the hug with greater fervor. She was incredibly thankful that Yang had done what she had and there was no possible way to express this other than through this hug. She wanted to say something, but words couldn't come to mind. It seemed as though Yang wasn't bothered by the lack of speech because she did not relent from the hold, choosing to comb her fingers through Blake's hair. Due to her ever-present aura, whatever amount of water that had wetted her hair became nonexistent through Yang's aura-heated fingers. Blake also found that residual rain clinging to her skin and clothes evaporated with the proximity of the hold. She doubted that Yang could understand in this moment just how thankful she was to have her by her side.

Both became aware of the soft padding of muted footsteps. With speed rivaling that of Ruby, Weiss had changed into her pajamas and was now walking towards the two of them whilst drying the ends of her hair with a towel. Somehow, she looked immaculate despite the undeniable fact that she had been caught in the downpour. Without the slightest concern for cordiality, she began, "Ruby told me that you had the means to check the weather. Care to explain yourself?"

Blake broke away from the hold so that her partner could respond and so that she could take off her shoes. "The…means?" Yang parroted. It took a few moments, but soon enough, her eyes widened in realization. "Right…huh, I guess I forgot about that."

Weiss stopped her drying motions so her glare could become even more scathing than it already was. "What did you forget this time?"

"I got myself a laptop for some reason before I left for Beacon." She sheepishly rubbed the back of her neck. "I guess that I forgot that I had it." Weiss looked as though she was about to scold Yang on what could have been her incompetence, but she never had the chance because Yang continued. "And," she laughed nervously, "I never exactly opened it either."

In a word, Weiss looked to be utterly baffled by this piece of information, causing an expression that seemed to ask the questions of "What?", "Really?", and "Seriously?" simultaneously. Instead of asking any of these questions or berating Yang, Weiss simply stared at the blonde for a few seconds before saying, "Okay, I think I've had enough of today. You two have a good night. Just don't bother me—at least hold off on it until tomorrow." As she walked back towards the hallway, still drying her hair, she could be heard grumbling something pertaining to the irrationality of forgetting about owning a computer. She quickly knocked on the door of her shared room. "Ruby, are you decent yet?" She must have gotten a positive response because she headed into her room seconds later, leaving Blake and Yang to themselves.

Yang continued to stare at the hallway with a confused expression on her face. "What's her problem? It's just rain."

She was right—though, not on the desired purpose of her question. It was only raining now, so there was no reason to be on edge, waiting for another clap of thunder. Blake relaxed, if only marginally. "You're one to talk," she quipped, not entirely confident in her manner of speech, but sure enough that Yang would appreciate the banter.

"Hey, you didn't see me complaining when my hair got wet."

"I didn't get the chance to because you pulled your jacket over yourself before it could." Yang sent her both a smirk and a glare—a playfully challenging gesture if there ever was one. "What? Are you scared of a little water?" Surprisingly, Blake's mood had lightened to the point where the storm brewing outside no longer was of any current concern.

"No!" Yang argued. "It's just that if I got my hair wet, do you know how long it would take for me to dry it all out?"

If Blake had to answer, she would have guessed that it would have taken only a couple of minutes with a towel and her aura. However, answering was not on her mind at the moment. She found Yang's denial of a fear of water was perhaps too overzealous. While she did not believe Yang to be afraid of water, she knew that Yang was, at the very least, annoyed by it. This is why Blake made a conscious effort to keep her demeanor level and stoic as she assumed control of her Faunus ears. Thankfully, they had not gotten water inside them; though, there was some that could be felt on the fur outside. Yang didn't seem to notice until the last second that Blake flicked her ears towards her, sending a small spray of water her way.

Yang's reaction was indicative of definite annoyance rather than definite fear. She simply stood there, drops of water now dripping down one side of her face as her smirk dissolved so that a glare could take over her visage. "Jerk," she simply said. This was then followed by the smirk returning in full Yang fashion. "That's cheating. You could have warned me that we were going to have a water fight."

Blake smirked back. "Well, were not. It's not much of a battle if I've already won."

Yang narrowed her eyes, creating an over-exaggerated serious expression. "Just you wait, Blake Belladonna," she began, "I'll get my vengeance yet. When you're least expecting it, I'll be there to rain on your parade."

There were a few futile seconds where Blake believed that she could keep her composure. Due to her fondness for the blonde having grown immensely over these past few days, she couldn't help but feel laughter coming on at the pun. She tried to contain it, she honestly did, but she found the joke far too funny than it actually was and laughed uncontrollably in light of the shared mirth between the two. It was odd for her, laughing. Normally a small giggle or occasional short chuckle could represent her amusement adequately. However, in this moment, hysterical laughter was unavoidable and fortunately contagious.

Soon enough, both girls were laughing together at a joke both circumstantial and unfunny. Blake couldn't remember the last time she laughed this hard but found the experience utterly rejuvenating. After that brief moment of phobic paralysis, it felt good to laugh and relieve the tensions that had amounted all throughout the day. She found that Yang's laughter only kept her going. She rationalized the scene as potentially unbefitting for her regular personality, but she would not complain. It just felt right to laugh.

Their amusement slowly came to a close with neither knowing why they found the joke so funny but both being rid of whatever negative sentiments had managed to linger. With smiles stuck to their faces, they simply looked at each other. Out of the corner of her eye, she could faintly see the time on one of the television room's boxes. While she could not be sure what the specific hour was, the fact that it was in the double digits told her that her day had come to a close too soon once again.

Yang, still recovering from the mirth that winded her, didn't have time to react to Blake approaching and wrapping her in a hug. This action caused the joviality to taper off into a simple, comfortable happiness that was solidified with Yang eventually reciprocating the embrace. "What's this all about?" Yang asked.

"Nothing," Blake sighed. "It's just getting late is all."

"It can't be that late," Yang mused as she looked over to some unseen clock that had not been in Blake's vision. Whatever she saw seemed to cause her shoulders to slump ever so slightly. "Yikes," she said, "I guess it is late." Despite this apparent epiphany, neither moved, causing Yang to remark with a smirk, "What? Do you want me to walk you to your room or something?"

Blake shook her head amusedly and disengaged from the hold. "Thank you for tonight, Yang." She wanted to say more, to elaborate on why she was thanking her, but she couldn't yet. There were some things she was better off not knowing. "Have a good night." She smiled waited for her partner's response.

"Yeah, you too, kitten." Yang smiled softly back at the Faunus. Before Blake could turn away towards her room, Yang began again, "And Blake?" Said girl turned around, a confused but not at all oppositional expression on her face. "If there's something you need to talk about, you can come to me." Blake smiled. "I mean it; I'll be there if you just want to talk about whatever." Yang's expression had taken a solemn, yet hopeful expression that conveyed her absolute conviction in this statement to Blake.

"Thanks," Blake managed to say. "I'll be sure to keep that in mind. Good night, Yang."

"Good night, Blake." At this, the young Faunus retired to her room, weary from the day but rejuvenated by recent experiences.

In the grand scheme of things, today seemed to have gone fairly well—not amazingly well, but a little better than adequately. As she changed into her nightwear, Blake took comfort in the hope that the arrhythmic sounds of the pouring rain against the roof would allow her to sleep somewhat peacefully. She resigned to her bed, turning off the lamp that sat atop her nightstand and voluntarily becoming shrouded in still darkness. As she drifted off into a quick, shallow, but much-needed slumber, she strained to focus on the hypnotic sounds of the weather, hoping to drown out the memories that still attempted to resurface. To some extent, she was successful as she had managed to fall asleep rather peacefully with a vacantly optimistic expression remaining on her features.

* * *

Every individual knick and cut could be consciously felt as Blake tumbled through the wild hedges and brambles that formed the side of this jagged hill. She was deafened once more, the storm having overtaken her position and bringing her to experience a pain that had never been felt prior or would never be paralleled again. She had escaped from the mob of counter-protesters at a cost far too great for her conscience to deal with. Because she had escaped, she was alone, broken, and scared while on an uncontrollable descent down the wounding slope of the hill on which the flaming factory still burned.

She would tumble many feet down this cliff, unable to grasp at anything or even attempt to slow her descent. The obstacles of varied sizes and the whims of unbiased reality were the only forces that could slow her descent. And they did, abruptly.

On a small, unfortunate landing did the younger Faunus land, bruised, cold, and with a sickening copper taste lingering in her mouth. Yet, she could not pay these worldly ailments any mind. Her spirit and mentality had taken the brunt of the fall. Even as the thunder shook this small platform, she could only remember the terrible wails of her compatriots and the ravenous shouts of the humans. She writhed in agony, not because of the numerous cuts left on her body but because of the haunting sounds that would not give her ears reprieve. Through the ringing and white noise, Blake's ears were able to pick up the faint cries of the other White Fang members still at the factory.

She hadn't come to fight and now she was the only one remaining as far as she knew. She was alone with no soul left to talk to—no one left to ask for assistance. The rain was freezing and her mind did not fare much better. Because she was alone and because she had been the sole survivor, she knew she would be recognized—merited—for what she had done at the factory. But what did she do? A searing amalgam of cowardice, incompetence, and insubordination was her own answer.

Thunder crashed once more, bringing the Faunus back to unbearable reality. The weather had been so strong that it physically shook any dislodged pebbles and stones that happened to be out in the open. Blake rolled onto her back, staring up at the grotesquely grey sky and the unrelenting precipitation that fell from it. Her breathing had become shallow and her mind could not keep from wandering. She could only try to make sense of the situation in her shock but she would never be successful in this endeavor. Lightning streaked across her vision but did not cause her to wince. What did cause her to react was the sound that followed the bolt.

She clamped her eyes shut at the sound. It was a gunshot that never occurred. It was a gate's lock being broken instantly. It was the deafening stampede of humanity running towards her. Thunder was all of these sounds in one to her mind now. No amount of rationalization or repression could deny this fact. A phobia was set in stone and her mind had resorted to a state of shock.

Remnant shook again, causing Blake to turn onto her side and curl into her knees. She was alone. The quick drops of rain stung at her already inflamed flesh. She was cold. The terrible sounds would not leave her alone. She was crying.

Fourteen is an age far too young to be expected to take leadership for a militant protest, control a crowd, and deal with such repercussions for failure. Blake did not see it this way. She saw this instance as both a monumental failure and a squandered opportunity. It had been a chance to take charge and make a difference for once. Her endeavors to add to the reasons for integrated workplaces for the Faunus people had seemed so practical and so possible, yet they were in vain. In this tumultuous world that she volunteered to be a part of, all she wanted right now was to go home. The thunder, however, thought otherwise.

She didn't want to move, but did so instinctively despite her best efforts to remain stationary and afraid. She crawled so piteously towards the hill, hoping to find some sort of respite. As yet another clap of thunder hammered the landscape, she found herself backed up against a low, rock overhang in the hillside. She was safe for now—or so she thought. The storm sounded again, bringing with it a deluge of new irrationalities.

From where she sat huddled against the stone wall, she could only just see the distant, small town through the veil of torrential rain. She needed to see the town at this moment—she needed to see something concrete and undeniably based in reality. Unfortunately, this state that could have allowed for recovery to occur began to inhibit it instead. The overhang disappeared, causing Blake to look up exasperatedly at the unhindered rain. When she looked back to the town, she found that no longer was she on the side of a hill but on top of a cliff. She knew this cliff and the marble bench that sat atop it and this was absolutely disquieting.

The grey sky became black and that small, chimney-dotted town grew to a size rationally incomparable. Blake cupped her Faunus ears as thunder rang out. After opening her eyes from her unintended wince, she saw Vale in the distance. Vale—the city she had wanted to be and the place where she could find a home of sorts—was now completely dark, vacant, and able to exponentially increase the moans and wails that Blake heard from her fallen White Fang comrades. When she looked behind herself, she found a horrific version of Beacon Academy. All of it, from spire to pond, was shrouded in a silhouette of which seemed to be impossible due to the lack of any visible light source. There didn't look to be any windows; if there were any, whatever lights existed in the rooms had been extinguished. It was sickening to see this place that had been founded on a doctrine of justice for all creatures of Dust be subverted by the darkness of the mind. Whether or not it was Blake's mind or the collective minds of a malevolent crowd that was this described darkness, she could not be sure.

She did not care which entity caused her distorted vision, for her attention was focused on something she thought she heard. A slight shift in tonality of a few of the wails caught her attention. A long, loud roar of thunder broke her attention for a moment. However, by the time it ceased, there was no mistaking that she had heard something very different and very disturbing.

Ruby and Weiss were somewhere in pain. Wherever they were would be the same place the groans of the fallen members of the White Fang protest came from. She tried to call out to them, to ask where they were, but found that she could not speak. Her expression was stuck in a wicked parody of her normal stoic demeanor. No matter how hard she tried, she could not convey any sense of emotion other than the slow dripping of tears that were lost anyways amongst the falling rain. The two began chanting her name in much the same way the White Fang members had been.

Had she caused them pain as well? She had warred with the Schnee family for too many years; perhaps she had managed to personally injure Weiss. And Ruby—the innocent, idealistic girl had been nothing but kind to her and all she could manage to do in return was avoid her.

All thoughts ceased with a new voice crying out in pain.

Now Blake wanted to scream. Yang was in trouble; she just knew it. She couldn't tell where her partner was and she needed to help her. She couldn't let Yang of all people become another victim to her incompetence and cowardice. Tears flowed faster as the screams became louder. She could not speak, so she had to search. Blake stood from the bench, braving the storm and the amplified gravity which begged her to stay in her seat. The thunder had become a constant, deafening growl but Blake could deal without her sense of hearing. It only let her know how much pain Yang must be in. She only needed her eyes to search and as she walked towards the edge of the cliff, she peered down into the abyss of darkness. She needed to find Yang.

In a final, titanic show of nature's power, a clap of thunder rattled the sisters' home and caused Blake to awaken in a cold sweat. The first thing that she realized when she came back into cognizance was that her breathing was rapid and shallow. Focusing on a stationary point on the ceiling, she began taking deep breaths in an attempt to calm herself down. Eventually, she was able to breathe easily enough that she could afford to pay attention to other attributes of her shaken state. She quickly realized that she was alone—Yang was not there and she could no longer hear her crying out in pain. She noticed that she was cold, or at least she was shivering uncontrollably. Finally, she felt an odd sensation hit her human ear and when she touched whatever it was with her hand, she found that she had been crying.

Blake sat up in her bed, trying to come to terms with the fact that what she had seen was only a dream. Despite it being some time during the night, a soft light came in through the curtained windows of her room. She figured that the rain that continued to fall was reflecting some sort of light source into her room. She didn't know what the light source was, but she needed to try to think of what it could be if only so she could get her mind away from the dream.

Unfortunately, instead of figuring out the source of the light, she simply sat still with her hands folded in her lap as she gazed vacantly into nothingness. She was bewildered, yes, but even that word doesn't begin cover the amount of shock she was being subjected to at this moment. The cries of her teammates—especially Yang's—sounded all too real to her. How could her unconscious mind even come close to replicating sounds that she had never heard before? Yang had never cried out in pain—at least, never around her. The fact that she had heard something impossible and yet sounded so real made her feel ill for a moment.

There was no more thunder, not any more. A gentle rainstorm was all that remained of the storm system that had awakened her and altered her sleep. While the injuries had long since healed, she could still feel the effects of the rapid descent down the hill. She was worried, anxious, and thoroughly uncomfortable for a reason she could not fully comprehend. From this, she knew that she was scared, something she had not been for a long time. However, she was not scared for herself. She was scared for her blissfully young and innocent leader; her promising, skillful, and level-headed teammate; and, most of all, her infinitely important girlfriend. And even worse, she was still afraid for the White Fang. Even though she had separated herself from the organization, she couldn't help but feel sorrow for their transformation into a militant group.

She made a conscious effort to try to feel her surroundings so that she could be sure that a tactile sensation grounded her in reality. She gripped her sheets tighter than she had intended. She knew that these linens which she felt and the tears that ran down her cheeks were very real; she knew that the world she inhabited now was very real.

Blake reasoned that she should be happy in the knowledge that her teammates were safe and unaffected by her previous act of cowardice, but she cried nonetheless. She knew that what had happened in the past could not be changed and she knew that she was doing her best to prevent a similar event from happening, but the fact that she was able to so intricately imagine the screams of her teammates was terrifying.

These memories could not be ignored, no matter how hard Blake tried to focus on the sound of falling rain. She had tried to go back to sleep by forcing her eyes shut and suppressing any and all thoughts that could come to mind. Visions of the factory, the shrouded city of Vale, and her fallen comrades presented themselves as her eyes closed. The wails and cries of teammates and former associates alike destroyed any chance of quiet slumber that she could possibly hope for. When she opened her eyes, these stimuli ceased, leaving her painfully awake in a cold, empty, and foreign room. The thought alone of her teammates being in trouble due to her actions tore away at her usually calm demeanor. The possibility of Yang being in pain was far too crippling to ignore. She had to know if she was all right.

Through her bleary vision, Blake was able to see the faintly lit numbers on her nightstand's clock. It was almost three in the morning and this disappointed her. She knew it was late, but she needed to know for sure that Yang was safe.

Blake took the sheets that restrained her and pulled them off of herself, becoming subject to the chilling effects of air conditioning on an already cold sweat. Standing proved to be a challenging task at first with her legs not wanting to cooperate with her intended actions. She felt faint and thusly wanted to return to her bed but she knew that doing so would only bring about the memories once more.

The dull crunching of her own footsteps on the carpeted floor was incredibly awkward to her. While she knew that the other members of her team lacked the enhanced hearing that she had been born with, she felt that even the smallest sounds could disturb their sleep. For a person so used to stealth through efficient speed, Blake found the slow movement of her room's doorknob to be painfully noisy. Fortunately, this pain was tolerable and welcomed in relation to the anguish caused by her memories.

As she stepped into the dark hallway, Blake could hear the muted sounds of restful breathing coming from the occupants of the room to her right. She closed her eyes in lieu of sighing in relief. Ruby and Weiss were safe. Yet still, she was not willing to let go of the idea that what she had experienced was more than a dream. While the two were valued teammates, they were secondary to the importance she had assigned to Yang. She who had become a prominent figure in her life in such a small amount of time was beyond the thin obstacle of wood, hopefully safe.

What if it really was too late to bother her? The pain in her voice had sounded so visceral. Ruby and Weiss were all right; why couldn't it be reasoned that she would be as well? Blake _needed_ to know. But what if her dream was only a simple nightmare? Would she be bothering Yang over something relatively inconsequential?

Blake then remembered what Yang had told her before inviting her to the fire and before wishing her goodnight.

Straining to keep the metallic whining of the door's hinges from being too noticeable, Blake slowly managed to peer into her partner's room. The layout, the furniture, and everything that wasn't her girlfriend did not matter to her. Her vision was instantly trained on a form that lay on its side and she knew it to be Yang. She could see the subtle rise and fall of her arm from time to time, so she knew that she was only asleep. The relief felt in this sight was enough to call for an audible sigh of relief.

Relieved though she was, Blake did not want to leave. Seeing that her girlfriend was safe made it easier for her to breathe and drowned out the oppressive memories. She simply stared at the immobile form for a few seconds before she hesitantly whispered, "Yang?" There was no logical reason for her to wake Yang, she just needed to hear her voice and know for certain that she was all right. "Yang?" She had been prepared to call her name a few times with the knowledge that her partner had a reputation for being a heavy sleeper.

A wonderfully alive sound came from the bed's sheets as the form became tangled in them to look towards the door frame. "Blake?" came the slurred, groggy voice of the room's occupant. She sounded tired and Blake immediately felt that she had made the wrong decision. Yang shifted so she could get a better look at the timid figure that peeked through the small gap in the door frame. "Blake, what's wrong?" She was rubbing her eyes, seemingly trying to wake herself up.

Blake was at a loss for words. It really had been a dream and she had been too dense to believe it. She wanted to say something—perhaps an apology for her intrusion—but the words could not come to her. This momentary lapse in speech did not dissuade her from attempting to say something anyways. "Nothing. Just…" She never finished the sentence, simply choosing to allow silence to settle between the two for many long seconds.

It wasn't until Yang spoke again that Blake was able to move. "Blake? Is everything all right?" The answer was no, but instead of saying this, Blake entered the room, not bothering to close the door on her way in. "Blake, are you crying?" She knew the blonde could not see in the dark, so she had to wonder how she had noticed this fact. It didn't take her too long to realize that she had been unintentionally sniffling. The moment she stopped this sound, Yang sat up in her bed, apparently awake and alert. "Blake," she began softly, "did you have a bad dream?"

"Bad" was an understatement for the horror she had felt being trapped with those sounds. Yang, having exhausted her repertoire of calming methods that would normally used on her girlfriend, had resorted to tactics proven over time to deal with a distressed Ruby. Blake could guess that this was the case due to the phrasing of the lattermost question's phrasing similar to something one would ask a child. Yet she could not argue that she wasn't a child in this moment. She couldn't reply verbally, a small nod conveying the scope of how "bad" her dream was.

Instantly, the sheets and covers on the bed were thrown out of the way so that Yang could spring to her feet and rush over to Blake. The Faunus was quickly lost in a warm embrace that she could not yet return. Yang didn't say anything, choosing to merely hold her as close as possible. Blake felt her feet moving without her conscious effort and before she knew it, she was seated on Yang's bed while being kept in a tight embrace from the side. In her tired and distraught state, she could only now begin to hear Yang's repeated assurance of, "Don't worry. I'm right here."

She hugged back tightly. If Blake had any say in the matter, Yang would always be there. She felt the need to cling to her partner so that any possibility of one leaving the other became impossible. She felt a hand running up and down her back. The room was still and she had become relaxed.

The combination of Yang's body heat, the soothing sensation of the hand on her back, and the gentle sound of the rain caused Blake's hold to weaken but not relent. However, Yang must have felt this as she stopped her motions before saying, "It's getting late. Let me help get you back to your room so you can get some rest."

Blake shook her head and tightened the hold she had on Yang. She didn't want to be alone. Not anymore. She had been alone for far too long and now she needed to know that Yang would stay safe. Yet she was too embarrassed by the alternative she wanted to suggest, causing her to try to convey the message through the head shake and tightened grip. Perceptive as ever, Yang whispered, "All right, just give me a second." She then pulled away from the hug, giving Blake a reassuring smile before standing. Without her partner to hold onto, Blake found herself cold and at a loss for what to do. That is, she had been at a loss for words before she looked at the nearby, standing form of Yang who whispered, "Just lay down. I'll take care of everything."

Blake dutifully brought her legs onto the bed, finding this mattress to be far warmer than her own in an incredibly comfortable way. As she adjusted to this sensation, she felt the previously discarded linens placed overtop herself. Looking to the culprit, she found the mane of golden hair moving to and closing the door before returning to the opposite side of the bed.

Yang gracefully slid into her bed. As she did so, Blake was not at all ashamed for the instantaneous reaction of feebly grasping onto her. Thankfully, Yang did not remark on this action, choosing instead to continue where she left off on rubbing her back.

The inexplicable feeling of comfort that Blake found from forcing herself to be as close as possible to her girlfriend was able to dry her tears entirely. To make sure that Yang wasn't going anywhere, she had locked one of the blonde's legs in place with both of her own, she used her arms to create a tight hold around her back, and she had her ear resting against her chest. She wanted to replace the screams and wails with peaceful sounds of Yang. These sounds came in the form of a fairly rapid heartbeat that was clearly audible and would be easy to keep track of. Yang was safe.

She felt a light, quick chuckle from Yang. "We're just a couple of hot messes, aren't we?" Blake agreed wholeheartedly through a rueful smile. They both had their memories that were able to bring such indomitable warriors to their knees—that were able to shatter their façades of normalcy into millions of pieces. But when they came together, it was easier to pick up the pieces. Yang stopped rubbing her back to pull her closer. Her head rested atop Blake's as she whispered, "Good night, kitten." But Blake was already asleep with a tranquil smile on her face and tears of joy having only started to accumulate at the corners of her eyes. She was safe.

* * *

During the group's conversation by the fire, I made an attempt to limit Blake's dialogue entirely, making it so that the other three members of the team could have the narration focused on their conversation. I felt that in this way, Blake's temporary muteness could act as both relaxation and an attempt at mental and emotional recovery. Honestly, I had to keep reminding myself of this self-imposed challenge and removed quite a few of Blake's interjections that made it into the story due to my apparent obliviousness. While the fact that I couldn't allow my protagonist to speak was, at times, inopportune, the amount of fun I had writing the banter between Yang and Weiss more than made up for this.

I also took a bit of liberty in how Blake's past played out. The only two instances in canon that have expressly shown Blake involved with the White Fang were in the Black Trailer and the flashback in Episode 16 that shows Blake as more or less of a child protesting with the White Fang. I figured that in the Black Trailer, Blake was either 16 or 17 years of age as she did not look too different from how she does in the series. Between the young age of the canon flashback and the older age of the trailer, I assumed that she stayed with the White Fang for the time between those two events. The flashbacks that I included were at a young enough age to where she was still convinced that the White Fang was perennially correct and old enough to feel emotional anguish—a pain that could start her objection to the actions of the White Fang.

In these flashbacks that I included, I had to change the diction choice, tone, and narrator style to fit the scenes. I hope the transition between the rest of the story and those scenes was not too jarring.

And now for the important part of this author's note.

It is with a heavy heart that I must say that I will be unable to post a chapter every week from now. This is not an announcement of a hiatus by any means. The reason for this announcement is due to my inability to keep up with my own schedule. I knew that this would happen eventually with a chapter taking roughly 1.5 weeks to complete, but I didn't expect it to be this soon. I am sincerely sorry.

This does not mean that I am cancelling, postponing, or moving away from _Valence_—those notions are contradictory to my desires. I am simply doing away with the weekly schedule as I will be unable to create a chapter of the same quality in such a time frame. Instead, I will post chapters as they become complete and go through a three-day revision process. This means that a chapter could come out on any day of the week but at longer intervals between. I am sorry for the inconvenience, but I'd rather not release a haphazard chapter that was rushed through to meet a weekly deadline. Instead, I will try my best to get them completed quickly, but I will never sacrifice chapter quality for word quantity.

And for those of you who may worry that my promise to continue to work is an empty one, know this: writing, for me, is more than a hobby. I have stopped watching television, playing video games, and even reading just so I can write more. I have come to enjoy writing more than most entertainment mediums in existence. _Valence_ is my top priority in terms of emotional attachment and while side projects with deadlines may interfere from time to time, I devote any and all free time I have to writing this story. I am sorry that I am unable to keep up my regular upload pace—truly, I am.

If I was to give an estimate of when the next chapter will come out, I would say two weeks as a minimum and a month as a maximum. I will do my best to give updates on my progress on my Tumblr.

Once again, I am sincerely sorry. Thank you for reading and giving your support. I feel as though I have let all of you down, but I intend to make it up over time with consistent quality in chapters. I hope I haven't let anyone down.

Stay safe and stay tuned.


	8. Chapter 8: Burning Heart

I apologize for the wait. Really, I am sorry; as each day passed and I still didn't have the chapter complete, I found myself asking whether or not this chapter would be good enough to publish. There was a problem in tonality with writing this chapter caused by personal events that I'm not going to get into. What needs to be known is that a majority of this wait was caused by rewrites and trying to find some sort of coherency between the shifts in tone. Again, I am truly sorry. I promised that this would have come out a month ago, and I failed in that regard.

To compensate for my error, I set up a download link for PDFs of every chapter of _Valence_ out so far (found at the top of my profile). I understand that the longer sentence and paragraph structures of this story do not seem to agree with Fanfiction's format. These will hopefully allow desktop-view readers to read the story easier since they format the story as I normally read it. For mobile users, however, I am still unsure of what to do in terms of offering different file formats. I tested the PDFs on my phone, and while they do load, they do not scale adequately. Besides, I am unsure if the host I used for the PDFs works easily for mobile devices. I considered an EPUB/E-book format, but if I am going to do that, it will be made when the story is complete and would include every chapter in a single book.

The main point to take away from the prior paragraph is that if you dislike the format of Fanfiction and you read on a computer, I have a link to PDFs for the chapters on my profile.

Once again, I am so sorry for the wait. Hopefully chapter eight of _Valence_ serves to make up for the impromptu hiatus.

* * *

Chapter 8: Burning Heart

It had been five days since Blake left Beacon Academy, her studies, and her mysterious, reserved personality behind for the promise of a life that would be both uncharacteristic of her and entirely restorative to her sociality that had otherwise been suppressed by fears of rejection and the unknown. In these five days, she had come so far from who she once was. Instead of preferring to stay as close to her dorm room as possible as to not engage in any extraneous social gatherings, she found herself thrust into situations that required atypical enthusiasm and that often included large groups of people, much to her initial chagrin. She had become more reliant on others and personal interaction rather than the escapist possibilities of novels which could supply her only with intangible visions of romance, humor, and overall happiness. She had been able to overcome her deep-seated distrust of the human race to the point where she was willingly able to commit the entirety of her summer to be in the company of three humans that she could now call friends. However, at this juncture, all of these changes were but annoying ideas that kept the young Faunus from staying asleep. In an attempt to reverse this effect, Blake nuzzled closer to the warm form that she had seemingly been clinging to for the entirety of the night.

Under these warm sheets that shielded her from the cold morning air, Blake felt safe and blissful. This bliss was only added to by the fact that the form by her side did not leave her and gave her the unspoken permission to express her affections. Blake, being well-versed in literature and having a vocabulary at her disposal that could describe a situation both vividly and precisely, could not think of her current actions as anything but two words. The verbs "cuddle" and "snuggle" were so far beneath her "mature" diction that to think that she could use the words to describe any action which she could partake in—let alone be the main instigator of—would be demeaning in its own right. And yet Blake did not care that she was snuggling and cuddling the form beside her fervently. Her past, her future, and everything that she thought she was became nonentities in this moment of lackadaisical joy.

Yang was a blessing if ever there was one. In this very moment, she was warm, kind, and so accepting of Blake that she dared not move lest she inadvertently awaken the young Faunus. Of course, Blake only saw the immobility in this light. She had been awake for a little bit, not long enough to warrant actually getting up, but enough to where she was far from asleep. A soft, wide smile graced her features. She dared not open her eyes, for she wanted to make the most of this situation and take in all the sensory details that she could. Seeing would overpower the other senses. For now, Blake nuzzled closer into the form, feeling the fabric of what she believed to be Yang's tank top rub against her cheek.

She hoped that Yang was awake, if only so she could hear her melodic voice once more. However, as far as she knew, Yang was still resting. Despite being a heavy sleeper, the blonde didn't snore much—a fact that was very much appreciated by Blake who had slept with her ear close to Yang's heart and in effect, her head. Through the darkness of her unconscious, she had been able to feel the faintest of warm breaths brush past the fur of her Faunus ears every so often during the night. Somehow, she had managed to move closer to the form beside her, thankful that she had been there for her and thankful that she had stayed. She took in the characteristic scent of lavender and sighed happily.

To think that Yang had said "Yes." To think that she allowed for all of this to happen. To think that she would be there for Blake whenever she needed someone to be there for her. Blake could not have been happier with any other single decision in her life. She was more than grateful to Yang—happy, thrilled, nervous, all of these and more and yet she was without a word to describe this feeling. She felt as though she could cry tears of joy, but chose not to as it would only soil the otherwise blissful moment. This was as much Yang's time as it was hers. She didn't want to worry her with crying.

Instead, she held on tighter to the form beside her. Yang was safe now. She was distanced from whatever unfortunate circumstances she had been forced into by Blake's unconscious and she was here now. If the warmness under these sheets told Blake anything, it was that she was safe within Yang's unwavering hold as well. The storm had passed and they had come out of it more than all right. If anything, they were closer and Blake knew this. To what extent, she wasn't sure, but she knew for a fact that Yang would be there for her and that she would gladly be there for Yang.

Nothing struck her as funny about the current situation and yet Blake felt a desire to giggle well up within her. This was an odd sensation, something she had never before encountered. She was somewhat concerned at what appeared to be the possibility of manic laughter, but chose to write it off for now. She figured that perhaps she was just happy enough that she felt the need to laugh—that was something that she read about somewhere before.

Admittedly, she didn't know how to react to much of anything that occurred as of late. At this moment, she was sharing a bed with another person. The fact that she was dating this person and that after only five days she would be this comfortable around her were both baffling thoughts. However, it is not to say that Blake saw this instance in a negative light by any means. Of course she had the momentary introspection of whether or not they was moving too fast in their relationship, but these thoughts were ceased by the sheer happiness that she felt lying beside her girlfriend.

She took a deep breath, taking in the sightless moment for all it was worth one more time. The fact that she could cling to Yang and not be judged for it in the least was able to make her feel unabashedly giddy. She hugged the form beside herself again, taking in the flowery scent and feeling the decidedly smooth fabric, before reluctantly pulling away. Now, she figured, was the right time to open her eyes and take in the sight of Yang in all her radiant splendor. Slowly and with an unbreakable smile on her face, Blake opened her eyes.

Normally, Yang's tank top was orange. Unfortunately, the fabric which Blake now held onto was purely white. At this revelation, she realized that the form beside her was much more relenting than a human's body should be whenever she applied pressure. She found that the scent of lavender no longer had a nearby source and was only a lingering memory of the person that caused it. Blake sighed as she disengaged from the form.

It was a pillow that she had been hugging. Because it was Yang's pillow and because she was lying in Yang's bed, she managed to retain some level of happiness. However, the fact that Yang was not there was more than a little troublesome. Blake was not dependent on her girlfriend for happiness and safety, but without her presence in this particular moment, she felt lost. Even with the knowledge that the form beside her had only been a pillow, she hugged it nonetheless. She didn't know why she held the pillow the way she did in this moment; she knew that she was saddened to some degree by Yang's absence and that she was frustrated that she had left her alone, but this hold expressed neither of these sentiments. She sighed dejectedly, wishing that Yang had not left.

What had been a wonderful, peaceful quiet became a bleak silence. Without the sound of Yang's voice or even her quiet breathing, Blake could only focus on the faint hum of the air conditioning. The only way she could describe this moment was "anticlimactic," though she could not say what she had expected in the first place. Some part of her wanted to wake up alongside Yang so that the two of them could start the day off together. Then again, another—admittedly uncharacteristic—part of Blake wanted to be woken up to Yang brushing her ears and telling her another unfunny joke. Even still, she perhaps wanted to wake Yang in such a way, with her own bad joke and gentle brushing. However, all of these desires were impossible without Yang's presence and for this, she frowned.

Blake didn't know how long she laid there, thinking about nothing in particular and holding the white pillow that smelled somewhat like flowers close. Her drive for efficiency had vanished and was replaced with a mentality that only wished to remain inactive for the time being. It is not to say that she was sad, upset, or affected by any other negative mindset. No, Blake was simply thinking. She, herself, wasn't exactly sure what she was thinking about—mostly Yang, but occasional internal monologues about how she shouldn't remove the blanket because the air conditioning was too cold or observations about the grey light that filtered through the curtains of the room distracted her.

She found her eyes wandering around her girlfriend's room, not in search of anything in particular. It looked like her own room, only larger and more furnished. The rooms had the same beige walls and immaculate curtains; however, Yang's room seemed more alive than hers. She could see a door that decidedly did not lead into the hallway. If she was to guess by the small amount of what looked to be ceramic tile, she would guess that the room beyond that door was the master bathroom. Though she was certain that this new information was insignificant and probably wouldn't be used, she felt that knowing a bit about the house's layout made it easier to adjust. Though, adjusting was an inconsequential action by this point. She was more than comfortable around her teammates and Yang, causing her to feel no shame when softly laughing at an unopened box in the corner of the room that looked to contain a laptop. Even when Yang wasn't physically present, she still managed to be incredibly hospitable.

Just as Blake was becoming tired once again, the Faunus ear that had not been trapped between her head and the pillow perked up. Begrudgingly, she attempted to figure out what caused this reaction. There was the distant sound of a person talking—rather, two people talking. Blake did not care who the first voice belonged to, having quickly trained her focus on the second. There was only one person in this house who could hold a complaining tone while still joking and teasing. Blake smiled widely. Perhaps the morning was still salvageable.

There was a moment of trepidation after first pulling the bedding off herself and becoming exposed to the cold air. She hadn't realized exactly how warm the bed had been and suddenly wanted to return to it. She did not, however, as Yang's voice continued. She was thankful for the carpeted floor throughout the house, but this still did not alleviate the frigid sensation that was now affecting her legs. She had the thought of going into her room to at least put her leggings on, but decided against it. As she walked towards the door, she found it to be only just open, proving to her that Yang had left after waking up.

As soon as Blake set foot in the hallway, all extraneous thoughts that did not concern Yang were dismissed. She walked ahead, unconcerned about the light snoring sounds that resonated through Ruby's room. As it had been on that fateful day only three days ago, the sound of conversation seemed to come from the kitchen. Immediately, she went that way as quickly as she could while maintaining a calm, discrete level of noise. She would have run to the source of the sound if it wouldn't have caused too much sound. Nonetheless, she stopped in the doorway to the kitchen, choosing only stare at the sight before her.

Be it the glow of the mid-morning sun after a night of rain or simply the blonde's cheerful demeanor, Yang was positively glowing. However, she had not noticed Blake yet. This was fair enough for the Faunus, as she was content with just gazing at her partner. In doing so, she was inadvertently able to eavesdrop upon the conversation Yang was having with her sister.

"Fine," Ruby seemed to relent. "If you promise you'll leave her alone today, I'll keep quiet."

Yang made a show of rolling her sparkling, lilac eyes. "But I only have to hold off for today, right? Or is tomorrow off-limits too?"

Ruby sighed in an uncharacteristically exasperated manner. "I don't want you to, but there's no way I can stop you, is there?"

"Nope!" Yang chirped.

"I thought so," the young leader grimaced. She then looked up to seriously meet her sister's gaze. "You really need to tell her, Yang. I promise that I won't, but you're going to have to sometime soon. I have a feeling she'll be disappointed if she doesn't find out before she can get you anything."

As Yang dismissively rolled her eyes once again, Blake found herself distracted by the conversation that had taken place. Because she had walked in on the two discussing subjects that seemed to be kept purposefully confidential, she knew better than to ask what was going on. Still, she couldn't help but be curious. Luckily, she had come across the two as they were finalizing their agreements, so there would be little guilt in her eavesdropping. But now that the two had stopped talking, she found herself compelled to simply look at her girlfriend. Almost instantly, Yang looked towards the doorway and beamed.

Because the kitchen lacked the carpeting that the rest of the house had, the floor was incredibly cold to the touch for those who neither had a fire-based aura nor had developed callousness to the sensation after years of strenuous running. Blake didn't pay this sensation any heed, however, as she strolled through the kitchen and towards her girlfriend. She didn't care if Ruby was present or not; her attention was solely focused on Yang who was greeting her with a genuinely sunny, "'Morning, Blake!"

Blake's response came in the form of wrapping Yang in a hug that had missed its intended target earlier. As Yang reciprocated the warm hold, Blake closed her eyes and turned her head side so that she could hear the heartbeat she had fallen asleep to once again. She felt a light chuckle come from Yang. "I guess _someone_ slept well."

Blake hummed in affirmation and whispered, "Good morning, Yang."

Ruby laughed nervously. "Yeah, I'll just..." She never finished the statement, having scurried out of the room to give the two some privacy for the moment. Blake was grateful for this, but right now, all she could think about was Yang.

As she took in the source of the lavender scent, Blake felt one of Yang's arms come up to cradle the back of her head while the other slowly rubbed her back. She shivered at the contact—not because of the cold air or the floor, but because she felt so right in this position. "Are you all right, kitten? That storm seemed to shake you pretty hard." Blake nodded into Yang. Honestly, she was more than all right now. Yang gave a short, relieved laugh. "Well, that's good to know. Sorry I left before you woke up. Just had to take care of a few things and I thought I'd let you rest."

Blake gave a short laugh of her own. "Don't worry. You're here now and that's all that matters." She was pulled closer by Yang who began exuding a great amount of prideful warmth that kept even the slightest feelings of coldness away. After a few seconds, Blake's smile turned into a smirk. "You know, I never would have thought that you would be the type of person to wake up early to get things done." If this show of maturity was the case, then it would only be another characteristic of Yang that Blake admired.

"Pffft!" Yang sounded, shaking any complimentary remarks that Blake had prepared for her. "It's after noon, Blake." This caused the Faunus' eyebrows to furrow and the blonde's tone to become more teasing. "I guess you just got too comfortable and slept in."

There was nothing false about Yang's statements. When Blake opened her eyes, she saw an appliance's clock that proved it was only just after noon. While she was disappointed that she had slept a third of the day away, she could understand why. After last night's storm and the stress of her nightmare, the relief she felt from finding Yang safe and the subsequent consoling she received resulted in perhaps the deepest, most relaxing night of sleep she had ever had. She hummed, "Perhaps." Blake then closed her eyes again, simply basking in the warmth exuded by her partner.

It was then that Yang snickered, causing Blake to reopen one eye inquisitively. "The best part is you aren't the only one who slept in." Due to her undeterred focus of finding Yang when she walked to the kitchen, Blake had not noticed anyone else who could have been asleep. "Weiss' driver has been sitting out there for like four hours. Talk about dedication! What do you think she's paying the guy?"

Blake didn't have a response to that. Between the uneasiness she felt in making fun of a teammate behind her back and the fact that any response she could have given would be cut off by a noise within a different part of the house anyways, she chose to remain quiet.

"Ruby!" came the distant, commanding shout of a newly awakened Weiss. This was followed by a string of commands that were incoherent from the Faunus' current position, but she was able to hear the heiress shout "Quickly!" and the door to the opposite partnership's room be closed. Ruby would audibly sigh and her door would reopen not four minutes later. Even from the kitchen, both Blake and Yang could hear the heiress' statement of, "Quickly. We haven't much time to spare."

The speed at which Weiss was able to change clothes was nothing short of a phenomenon for anyone, let alone for one who is as conscious of her external appearance as she is. However, the problem with phenomena is that they are seldom replicated successfully outside of their original instances. Ruby, being as physically fast as she was, could only change her clothes at a fairly normal speed. If she was to rush this process—which, in this case, she did—she would barely make it out of her room in a state only just able to be referred to as "disheveled." It could not have been more than five minutes before the door to Ruby's room reopened and closed once again.

Blake could see the spectacle of red and white pass by the doorway to the kitchen. The frustration radiating off of Weiss was unable to be ignored. The forced gait, the balled fists, and her forward glare all pointed to the fact that her temper was more so caused by herself than by Ruby. Still, this did not stop either of the two from going about their scheduled day while the young leader struggled to pull on a boot as she walked. The heiress stopped and looked at the couple as she stated flatly, "We are leaving for the exhibit. Do not bother following us."

Yang rolled her eyes and shook her head as she heard the front door open and quickly close again. "Of all people, Ruby, why'd it have to be her?" Because the question was posed to a person that was neither present nor herself, Blake simply returned to the hug that she still kept Yang in. "Whatever," Yang sighed, "they'll have fun." Her expression then turned to that of a grin. "Now, what about us?"

Moving her head away from the hold, Blake looked up to meet Yang's gaze. "What do you mean?"

"Do you still want to head downtown? The weather's a little…well, it's not raining anymore, so we could probably make something of it. I mean, we can do whatever—I'm up for anything you wanna do."

Due to the remaining lethargy of having slept in, Blake was not too inclined to make any sort of decision at the moment. However, as she was awake now and because Yang, too, seemed to be avoiding making a decision, she felt compelled to take some form of leadership. It took a great deal of effort on Blake's part to remove herself from her girlfriend, but once she did, she said, "Sure, I'm fine with heading out. Just let me take a shower first and then we can go."

Yang smiled softly. "Sure thing." This was all she said for the moment. While the fact that neither moved from their spots may have seemed awkward, it felt right for them to just smile at each other for a few long seconds.

For some reason—possibly due to the enjoyment Blake found in watching Yang's smile—the young Faunus let out a short laugh before telling Yang, "Okay, I'll be out in a minute."

At this, Blake began to walk away, intent on preparing for an exciting day that was to come. However, her exit would be postponed by Yang's call of, "Take your time! We aren't in any rush."

Blake stopped before the doorway and smiled back at Yang. She wanted to say something in return but knew not what that something would be. For the moment, she gave a soft smile that would serve to delay any sort of response while she became increasingly aware of her discomfort in saying goodbye—even if they would be apart for only a short period of time. She felt that a response was required in this instance; however, a simple "I'll be right out" would not suffice for the deep-seated forlornness that she felt at this departure—it would, perhaps, misrepresent the care that she wished to express with a short and simple phrase that she was yet to create. Unfortunately, between the discomfort she felt in bidding farewell and the fact that her diction was presently escaping her, Blake was only able to muster a thankful smile before turning to leave.

As Blake made her way to her room to gather the clothes she was to change into, she could not help but think about the apparent awkward state she had left the conversation in. She believed that she had interrupted Yang's initial dialogue with Ruby only so that she could be near the blonde again. But at the same time, she knew that Yang was happy to see her as well if the reciprocated embrace meant anything. Still, she thought that she could have made a better, more meaningful exit that would have both reassured Yang that she would return shortly and would make the situation marginally less awkward. As Blake made her way towards her room, she was unable to see the goofy smile that Yang continued to hold despite the amount of effort she put into composing herself.

* * *

While it was not currently raining, the low temperature and the slow, ambient drips from the house's roof made Blake feel as though it was. Some part of her regretted doing so, but the majority or Blake's thoughts on opening the garage door and waiting by Bumblebee for its owner to return were positive. She enjoyed the subtly somber mood set by the grey sky and the reflective, silver puddles in the dirt road. The breeze, however, made her forget for a moment that it was summer. Her proactivity in preparing the garage for her and Yang's leave only brought forth a cold gust from the outside. Because she enjoyed the sight of the storm's aftermath and because of her underlying stubbornness about admitting fault in an otherwise "bold" action, Blake resigned to brave the cold. She tried to find some sort of warmth in seeing the calming image play out on the rust-red path, but despite the rubbing of her own arms, she could not rid herself of the breeze. The only article of clothing that marginally saved her from this breeze was the bow now wrapped around her ears; without it, she thought, this cold would have been unbearable.

Perhaps Yang would have been able to warm her. Not only did the girl have a warming aura about her at all times, she would have been more than willing to hold Blake and ward off the cold. Blake wouldn't have minded that at all. In fact, as the breeze grew colder, she found herself thinking more about her partner. As she thought more about the blonde, she felt noticeably warmer and became less concerned about the world around her.

Ever since her affections for Yang began, there had been a thought that ran through her mind: what, exactly, did she admire about her? A definitive answer had never been reached due to Blake's internal insistence that this was her mind trying to find any possible opportunity to dismiss her relationship as something meaningless and trite. But now that she was happy with the relationship and because she often found herself compiling a list of reasons why she liked the girl, she figured that she could answer the question without feeling conscious of a flawed justification.

Yang was an excitable extrovert—a combination so very opposite of what Blake considered herself to be. The young Faunus was not necessarily opposed to the concept of opposites attracting (she had read of the idea enough to where she considered it to be at least plausible), yet she felt that this did not apply to their relationship. At a very basic level, she wanted to be generally accepted in society—not as a Faunus or a huntress, but as Blake Belladonna. Being with Yang accomplished this acceptance and created a means for Blake to become more extroverted herself. She wanted to be able to talk to people again without having to fear for the safety of herself or others associated with her. She saw Yang as the epitome of conversational confidence and thought that perhaps she could learn something from the blonde through osmosis.

While she was hesitant and initially annoyed at her partner for involving her in activities that often involved groups of people, Blake eventually warmed to Yang's antics. Now she found herself asking to go downtown, into the populated city just so that she could spend more time around the exuberant youth. Blake couldn't decide if it was the fact that Yang could make any situation enjoyable or her apparent ability to make her ease into more conversational society that she found more appealing.

However, these could only exist as positives and not negatives due to Yang's restraint. Aside from the infrequent crude joke, Yang was surprisingly aware of Blake's limits. The young Faunus knew that her partner wanted their relationship to move a little faster, but the blonde showed no qualms about the pace that she desired. They had found a happy medium between their respective paces and Blake attributed this feat mostly to Yang. Still being somewhat hesitant about deepening the relationship, Blake found herself taken aback by her own willingness to be as close to Yang as she had been this morning. Looking back on the events of those early hours, Blake knew that Yang could have easily taken advantage of the situation. A brief, wide smile tugged at the corners of Blake's lips because Yang had shown restraint. This is not to say that Blake distrusted Yang at all; this is simply a matter of hindsight being over-analyzed and appreciated.

Still, this only covered Blake's intellectual attraction to the blonde. She undoubtedly found her partner physically attractive and, recently, became more willing to entertain these sentiments more frequently. Thinking about Yang in this way had become less taboo in her mind, thus allowing her to factor this into her rationalizations of her affections.

When it came to fighting, Yang was unmatched in both close-quarters and hand-to-hand combat as far as Blake was concerned. Even though her style was rough and, at times, reckless, she managed to execute every maneuver elegantly. Because her life seemed to revolve around her combat training, it was no surprise for this gracefulness to translate into Yang's everyday actions. She always had a bounce in her step and a noticeable amount of kinetic energy prepared in the off-chance of an emergency. Some may have called this preparedness somewhat paranoid, but to those who knew Yang like Blake did, this was simply a subconscious show of her power.

If one was to take away the intermittent narcissistic jokes, he or she would find that Yang was a fairly humble individual. Her pronounced strength was only one of her attributes that contradicted this modesty to those who did not know her. The perennial, warm aura that Yang had about her has intimidated others in the past who thought that she had an uncontrollable or excessively powerful Semblance. Those who knew her, though, understood that this aura was anything but intimidating—rather, it is to say that the aura was safe enough outside of the few instances where it actually was uncontrollable. Blake couldn't suppress an amused smile at the memories of Yang's outbursts. Other than those few lapses in control, Yang's aura was more than tolerable to be around. To be completely honest, Blake more than enjoyed the warmth given off by her partner, she was drawn to it.

There is no rational explanation for Blake's fondness of the warmth, but the fact of the matter is that whenever she found herself surrounded by the soothing heat, she felt as though she could let her guard down. This was historically unthinkable for a girl whose life had been seemingly centered around conflict, both internal and external. Yet it was the irony in Yang utilizing an aura intended for combat for something as innocent lulling her to sleep that made the Faunus able to relax. Through the brashness, the puns, and the isolated instances of uncontrolled emotions, Blake knew that Yang was amiable and completely benign and was all the more attracted to her for it.

After thinking about their relationship in this light, Blake found that she did not have an answer to her question. While this was unfortunate in her mind to some degree, the fact that she hadn't rationalized the relationship as "simple" and "juvenile" was one to take comfort in. Since she couldn't answer her first question, she posed a second: what did she think of Yang? Rather, she revised the question almost immediately to: after the events of this morning, what did she think of Yang?

Blake had no answer for this. The sentiments, whatever they were, were without a doubt positive. However, there was no word, phrase, or analogy that concisely conveyed what she was feeling. Of course she was happy—jubilant even—but at the same time she was oddly nervous. From an objective view, this nervousness did not spawn from any thought in particular, instead simply existing at a level that was both constantly noticeable but never bothersome. Perhaps this nervousness existed to counter the thrill that Blake had when she was around Yang, acting as a humbling balance to an otherwise strong emotion. Despite these, she also felt a small amount of sadness due to a current lack of Yang's presence.

This jumble of emotions was both heart-warming and mentally chilling, but could not be thought too much on for the moment. A clicking sound drew Blake's attention to the door leading from the house to the garage.

She turned in time to see Yang striding out of the door with an immediately warming smile. Blake smiled back at her, finding the sight wonderfully distracting from the cold. "Huh," Yang began, not slowing her pace as she moved towards the lockers against the back wall, "I thought it was supposed to be summer." As Yang opened the lockers and gathered their helmets, a cold gust invaded the garage, harmlessly blowing a few strands of hair over Yang's shoulder while causing Blake to shiver. "I will admit though," the blonde turned around, "it does make for great touring weather!" She winked at this statement before her expression froze and slowly declined.

This caused Blake to frown in turn. "Is something wrong?"

"You're cold," observed Yang. Blake raised an eyebrow; while she had been uncomfortable with the temperature before, she was content now that she was in the effective range of Yang's aura. The blonde's expression looked to be a mix of concern and deep thought. "You're shivering." Blake hadn't noticed that she had yet to cease the subconscious rubbing of her arms. Now that the action had attention drawn to it, though, she stopped. When she did, she found that she was shaking slightly. Before she knew what was happening, Blake found that Yang had taken off her jacket and was extending it to her. "Here," she said.

"What?" This question was not intended to verify Yang's intents more than it was to voice disapproval. Though Yang seemed to be unaffected by the cold despite her upper body's clothing consisting of only a tank top and scarf, Blake didn't want Yang to suffer for her sake. "Yang, I can't."

The blonde's eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean 'you can't'?" She sounded genuinely confused.

"I can't take your jacket. What if _you_ become cold while we're out? And what if it rains?" While the thought of accepting the jacket was appealing, Blake believed that it was her turn to take care of Yang.

However, this opposition wavered when the Faunus saw the blonde's frown turn into a playful smirk. "Blake, you know I have another jacket like this, right?" Hearing this, Blake remembered their last day at Beacon where Yang had changed from her combat jacket into the lighter variant that was now being offered. "You can wear this while I get the other one. I think you might need the heavier one, but until then, here." She extended the jacket out even further.

While part of her still did not want to accept the jacket due to the thought of Yang being cold without it, Blake knew that whatever argument she had against the offer had been dissolved with Yang's reminder. Hesitantly, she reached out to the offered item and touched it. It looked like it was made solely from leather, but she was surprised when she gripped a jacket that was made of some sort of fabric that was both soft and sturdy. Blake found that when she gripped it, Yang's hand fell away, leaving the jacket to be supported by her hold alone.

Blake's attention was distracted from the jacket by Yang's quick exclamation of "Be right back!" and subsequent bolting back into the house. She shook her head, smiling all the while. Yang had once again dismissed her troubles so easily.

With Yang's absence, another cold breeze blew into the garage. There was no longer a reason to argue against the offer now that it had been accepted. Blake held the jacket out in front of her and momentarily inspected it for any slight wrinkle or flaw that she might have created. Doing so caused the short sleeves to loosen and fall, proving themselves to be longer sleeves rolled all the way up to the shoulder. She found nothing immediately wrong with it nor saw this new revelation as alarming. She removed Gambol Shroud from her back and placed it on the counter before putting on the jacket. Instantly, she was met with comforting sensations. Her initial denial of the offer now seemed absurd.

She thought that the jacket would have fit her similarly to how it normally fit Yang; however, she found that the coat fit like one normally should, albeit with sleeves that were slightly longer than her arms. This provided her with complete, enveloping warmth that subverted any power the cold previously had over her. She rubbed her arms again; though, she no longer did this to fight off the temperature. She did whatever she could to bask in the feeling of this warmth and the fabric's texture. As opposed to the sturdy exterior of the jacket, the interior was as soft as a blanket, causing Blake to nuzzle into its collar. This action brought Blake's attention to another sensation. In nuzzling the collar, she noticed that she could faintly smell lavender. She grinned unabashedly, knowing that there wasn't anyone to witness her satisfaction.

Within recent memory, there had not been a single instance where Yang was unable to turn a negative situation into a positive one. Though Blake did enjoy periods of unexciting calmness, she could not complain about Yang's sunny attitude and how it always improved her situation. The blonde seemed to be perennially selfless—a fact that Blake often felt obliged to rebel against. How she could retain this level of positivity despite her desired occupation was confusing but not at all off-putting. Blake would not argue against Yang's altruism since it was in her partner's nature. She was cheerful, she was kind, and she enjoyed helping others. Perhaps this was the reason why Blake was drawn to her.

Blake's Faunus ears twitched under her bow, notifying her of a movement on the other side of the house's door. Instantly, she stopped her appreciative motions and forced herself to look somewhat bored.

The door opened again and before Yang stepped into the garage, she spoke. "All right, I've got it," she gasped, making a show of the fact that she ran through the house to find the now outstretched jacket. There didn't seem to be too much of a difference between the jacket Blake wore and the one that was held out to her. It didn't look "heavier" as Yang said it was, but Blake did not have any reason to doubt. Blake began taking off her jacket, but stopped as she found Yang moving closer and then behind her. "Here, let me help."

Before she could argue against the action, Yang began to pull the jacket off. While the proximity of Yang and her aura was relaxing, this interruption did not stop her from resisting. "Yang, please. I can take care of this myself."

"I know you can, but I'm going to help anyway." Blake groaned as the coat was removed. It wasn't the returning chill that caused this displeasure, but more so it was the removal of the jacket. Admittedly, she wanted to prolong her exposure to the fabric, causing her rejection of the assistance. However, she was compelled to accept the help not because Yang's actions were kind and sincere, but because she knew that arguing with Yang's adamancy was nearly pointless.

Looking over her shoulder, Blake saw Yang throwing the lighter jacket over her shoulder before lifting up the allegedly heavier jacket. She had come to terms with Yang's assistance, causing her to raise her arms with a smirk as she prepared for the jacket to be put on. The fabric within felt similar to that of the lighter item, however, there were areas where reinforcement was noticeable. She could already feel how this jacket would be warmer and had even observed a more noticeable existence of a lavender scent. The jacket seemed to fit her as well as the other, leading her to believe that this would be a suitable replacement. That is, she did believe this before Yang let go of it.

Instantly, Blake's shoulders sagged and her posture was forced into a slouch. When Yang said that this jacket was "heavier," Blake understood the description as "better equipped to fend off the cold." What she didn't realize was that this "heavier" jacket was actually Yang's combat attire, body armor and all. Not only did the increased weight catch her off-guard, but once she became aware of the incorporated plating, she still could not adjust properly. She made an attempt to stand up straight, only to be met with what must have been an additional half of her own weight's worth of resistance. She was able to correct her posture eventually, but the strain was tiring. Still, she was warm and would do her best not to complain.

"Blake?" Yang asked hesitantly. What the Faunus intended to do was quickly turn to speak to Yang face-to-face. What actually occurred was an agonizingly slow waddle as she fought against the weight on her shoulders. Eventually, though, she met the blonde's concerned gaze. "Are you all right? It's not too heavy, is it?"

"No, not at all," Blake attempted to dismiss. Unfortunately, she was unaware of the strain the weight placed on her voice, causing her nonchalant façade to be betrayed.

Yang narrowed her eyes. "Really, now?" Blake tried to nod in response, but failed to do so with the collar of the jacket keeping her from moving her head. Two gloved hands reached for either shoulder of the jacket, grabbed the leather exterior, and lifted. Relieved of the strain, Blake was able to breathe again and unwittingly make a show of it. Seeing this, Yang quickly removed the jacket and moved to grab the lighter one. She sighed, "Sorry, Blake. I wasn't really thinking. I didn't mean to hurt you."

Without the weight of the jacket, Blake was able to compose her thoughts. "It's okay. I'm fine. I just wasn't expecting it to be that heavy." With her lattermost statement, she had attempted to lighten the mood; unfortunately, Yang held an uncharacteristic frown as she returned with the lighter jacket. Before she could assist with putting it on, Blake stopped her. "Yang," she placed a hand on the blonde's arm, "it's okay. I wasn't hurt so there's nothing to worry about." Yang's frown did not vanish. Blake released her arm and pulled her into a hug.

This seemed to work as Yang finally sighed and relaxed. An additional apology or self-depreciating remark was what Blake expected Yang to return with, but her response of, "Thanks, Blake," brought a smile to the young Faunus' face. She disengaged from the hold and met Yang's slight smile with her own happy one. "Don't worry about it," Blake said, taking the jacket from Yang's hand. "Let's just get ready to go." At this, she donned the lighter cloth, showing Yang that she was ready to leave and that the recent confusion was already behind her.

Yang's smile widened as she put on her own jacket. As the blonde's spirits were lifting, Blake moved to prepare herself for her ride into the city, placing her weapon on her back and taking the helmets from the counter before returning to where Yang stood. "Ready?" Yang asked, seemingly more at ease with the previous accident. In reply, Blake smiled and handed her the yellow helmet. Yang smiled back. "Thanks."

Though this would only be Blake's second time riding a motorcycle in her life, she was noticeably calmer about the action this time. Getting the helmet on proved far easier than before and mounting the bike was far less intimidating. By the time Yang seated herself in front of her, the two were more than ready to depart and begin their day's expected fun.

Believing that Yang must have still been in an apologetic mood, Blake ensured that the action of wrapping her arms around Yang came across as more of a hug rather than necessary support for the ride ahead. It seemed to work to some extent as Blake could feel her girlfriend's muscles loosen and shoulders relax. Being this close to Yang and her happy aura made any remaining cold in the room vanish. The initial growl of Bumblebee coming to life only served to further this sensation.

As the two left the garage and ventured out into the cloudy, frigid countryside, neither was entirely sure of what they would do or where they would go. The only plan they had was that they would stay together through whatever was to happen. Blake held herself closer to Yang as the cold air whipped past them. She smiled warmly into the golden hair before her. She had no concrete itinerary and neither did Yang, but she didn't care. If she could be beside Yang, she would be happy with whatever events she would be thrust into.

* * *

The subtle murmur of ambient conversation was surprisingly audible over the constant hiss of the unmoving cars beside the couple. Wherever the two had parked, Blake couldn't be sure—judging by the ratio of vehicles to pedestrians, she knew that this part of the city was noticeably different from where she had been before. Even though the helmet was able muffle a fairly large amount of sound, Blake could distinctly hear the cars and conversation around her. Surprisingly, she found the noise to be calming in a way, acting as a sort of white noise to fill in the dead air of conversation while they sat atop the bike.

Blake unlatched herself from Yang, backed away, and watched the blonde remove her helmet before running a hand through her hair. Paying no mind to the potential awkwardness of the action, Blake simply stared as Yang fixed her appearance. There was something about the action that compelled her to watch—whatever that was is not known by her, but it can be said that an emotion not dissimilar to pride welled within the young Faunus. She was released from her awestruck stupor when Yang turned to face her, grinned, and said, "We're here. Anywhere you wanna go first?"

Having been suddenly brought back into reality and expected to reply intelligibly, Blake felt the need to stall for a moment as she did not have a response prepared. An adequate distraction, she found, came in the form of her removing her helmet and the time it took to do so, however brief that may have been. "Perhaps we should get off of the bike first and _then_ we can decide where we can go." She was satisfied with this response but did not realize this playfully condescending retort and her faux indifferent demeanor were betrayed by her own unwitting attempts at fixing her own hair—an action she had seldom given priority to in the past.

Yang rolled her eyes and shook her head as she climbed off of the motorcycle. Blake soon followed after with a smirk. While Yang took her helmet so that she could secure both of theirs to Bumblebee, Blake was able to quickly finish any subconscious adjustments she felt the need to make. Having nothing left to occupy her time, she resigned to waiting, folding her hands in front of herself, and secretly reveling in the feel of the jacket against her fingers.

She didn't have to wait long as she quickly found Yang's arm coming to rest over her shoulders before pulling her close. "Okay, now that we're off the bike," Yang began teasingly, "is there anywhere you want to go?"

Blake sighed contentedly and leaned into the sideways hold. "Not really, no." Because there was nowhere near the amount of people walking the promenades here as there was in the other part of the city, Blake did not feel that her show of affection was being scrutinized in the least. In fact, she felt that even if there was any form of objection to her actions, it would not matter—she was too engrossed in being beside her girlfriend that she couldn't care for any sort of negativity.

"Great!" Yang chirped. "Then on with the tour!" Blake found herself urged forward by the arm draped over her shoulder. This push, however, quickly proved unnecessary as Blake happily moved to match the pace. She didn't pay attention to the concerned looks passersby gave for her initial stumble. She mistook them as potentially opposed to their relationship and ignored them as such.

It was odd to her that this immediate locale chosen for the tour looked to be more commercial than historical. This was only added to by Yang's frequent, enthusiastic comments about places that could hardly be classified as meaningful landmarks. "Hey, look!" Yang exclaimed. Following the pointed finger, Blake's attention was drawn to a building on the opposite side of the road. "You said you wanted to find a music store, right?"

Blake chuckled. "Yeah, but not right now." Before Yang could object, Blake continued. "You're supposed to be showing me around town, remember? We can come back to it later."

"Why not now? Think about it; it could be fun!" Yang's expression would have come across as pleading had it not been for the care-free smile she retained.

Shaking her head, Blake replied, "Not today, Yang. We got a late start and if we added a trip to the music store—however brief it may be—there wouldn't be much time left for the tour."

Whether or not this logic had any effect on Yang is uncertain because during this conversation, the two had passed over a crosswalk, creating an intangible divide that noticeably dismissed her previous insistence through the brief cautiousness that the short trek required. "Fine," the blonde sighed happily as she leaned against Blake, "I guess you're right."

Blake rolled her eyes, seeing this response as Yang changing the subject in a lighthearted manner in order to mask her crestfallen expression. Rather, this is what Blake thought the response to mean, when in reality it turned out only to be a means for Yang to focus her girlfriend's attention on another personal landmark. "And over there is a pretty awesome sushi joint," she pointed out. "Only got to eat there once, but I remember the food being really good. We should go there some time."

Blake simply smiled and shrugged. She was not opposed to the idea—she was supportive of it, actually—but at that moment, she wanted to move on with the tour. While she was enjoying Yang's company, she didn't want the blonde to guide her through an itinerary of restaurants at which they could potentially dine or stores they might visit—she wanted to learn something meaningful about the city. Partly, this was caused by the slow-moving traffic making its presence audibly known, in effect overpowering Yang's voice in the process and gradually wearing down Blake's composure. However, this was only a fraction of her desire to move on. Blake wanted to explore and enjoy the city, its monuments, and the day with her girlfriend, not reminisce about a restaurant.

If nothing else, though, Blake was patient. She would entertain Yang's memories for her sake. She was aware of how selfish it would seem if she rushed Yang while she was enjoying herself just so that the tour could move on to locations that she, herself, wanted to visit. None of this summer would have been possible had it not been for Yang, so Blake became involved in Yang's musings. "Perhaps we could eat there when we come back for the music store."

This caused Yang's subtle smile to instantly transform into a shining grin, causing Blake's own smile to widen in turn. "Sounds like a plan." Blake's choice to occupy her time by engaging herself in the conversation paid off from both hearing Yang's approval and seeing what was ahead.

Though it was a block away from their current position, Blake could see something off in the distance that was decidedly a historical monument. How she had not seen it before was reasoned to be due to her conscious preoccupation with Yang's presence. Now, however, she could see a grand statue towering just beyond the block. There would not be any telling change of facial expression to indicate her excitement; instead, her stride increased to the point where Yang had to suddenly compensate by increasing her own speed.

This quest for knowledge was in no way an attempt on Blake's part to distract herself from Yang. What this fascination was formed from was a desire to replicate her last trip to the city and recreate the joy that she felt during it. The relative rush forward was her attempt to force upon the two of them a series of situations that would create similar joy. When Yang offered the tour the night before, Blake regarded the option as simply a way for the two to spend some time apart from Ruby and Weiss. When she saw this distant statue, however, she knew that whatever was to come would doubtlessly create lasting memories in both of their minds—memories involving the two of them together. It was for this reason that Blake rushed forward, pulling Yang along with her. In her haste, Blake failed to notice the existence of pedestrians other than herself and Yang on the sidewalk.

The couple's progress was suddenly halted as Blake's shoulder met another figure's. The impact was startling, sufficiently grounding Blake back into present reality, but it did not physically harm her in the slightest. The figure, on the other hand, was sent spinning until his back hit the wall of a nearby building. It was not the collision of Blake and the black-clad man that stopped the couple, but the sound of his impact on the wall. As Blake looked worriedly at the result of her distracted state, the man growled and spat, "Are you blind or something? Watch where you're walking, princess." Before Blake could apologize, he stormed off, swearing under his breath all the while.

She stopped and watched him walk away. Blake was sorry for not paying attention and causing him the trouble, but she found it hard to remain level-headed once she heard him swear. She was able to stay calm, however, due to Yang who was evidently not calm. Through the leather jacket on her shoulders, Blake could feel Yang's arm heating up and when she looked at the girl, she found red eyes glaring a hole into the back of the man's head. Blake sighed. "Yang, it's all right."

Yang's gaze seemed to grow harsher. "Who does that guy think he is? He acts like he's king of the world and the second something bad happens to him, he gets to play the victim! He ran into you and couldn't even give you an apology—talk about a coward! I—"

"Yang," Blake interjected, causing the red glare to soften to a lilac gaze directed at her. Instead of saying anything, she just shook her head.

The blonde looked to where the man had once been and groaned. "Fine. But that guy owes you an apology. I won't go after him or anything, but I still think he's an idiot." She then turned to smile softly at Blake. "Are you okay? He didn't hurt you did he?"

"Yang," Blake sighed again, "it wasn't his fault. I didn't pay attention to where I was walking and I got in his way. What he said after _was _unnecessary, but he had every right to be annoyed. If anything, I'm the one who owes him an apology."

Yang sighed. "Blake," she said exasperatedly before smirking at her. "You're too hard on yourself; you know that?" This caught the Faunus by surprise. "You need to lighten up a little. Sure, the accident probably wasn't _completely_ caused by him, but that doesn't mean you need to take the blame for it. I wasn't paying attention either; I could have moved us out of his way but I didn't. I don't feel like I'm the one to blame because it was an accident. I don't think anyone's to blame.

"But I still think he owes you an apology. With you walking next to me, it's hard to miss us—I mean, we _do_ stick out in a crowd." Yang then casted glances to the few pedestrians around them as she absentmindedly brushed her blinding, yellow hair with her free hand. Hearing this, Blake's frown brightened into an amused smile, one that Yang must have taken notice of. "It takes a lot to make a guy spin out like that; he was probably trying to draw attention to himself." Yang then looked down at Blake with the same smirk. "I mean, you hit hard, but not _that_ hard."

For the briefest of moments, a bright smile stretched across Blake's face. That is, this smile existed before it was replaced with a playful frown. Yang did not look the least bit surprised when Blake stepped away from the hold and punched her bicep. Instead, she laughed, "Nope. Not that hard at all." Blake rolled her eyes as she found her way back into the hold and moved ahead.

How Yang had managed to dismiss the apologetic thoughts so effortlessly was beyond Blake. She was thankful, nonetheless, but couldn't stop but ask herself if Yang was right. She instinctually gravitated towards the given ideas, but having spent her childhood in an organization that fought to remove the stigmata placed upon an entire race of people made it hard to accept in-the-moment rationalizations as fact. Even if Yang was teasing her about it, she knew that she was strong enough to significantly hurt another person. Though, Yang was correct in her knowledge that it took a greater force than she exerted to make a person spin like the man had. It was from this thought that allowed Blake to accept that the man had at least some responsibility in causing the accident. Yang's apparent involvement, however, was limited in Blake's mind only to her appeasing remarks after the incident.

She decided not to dwell for too long on the accident, having noticed the approaching statue. Her initial enthusiasm had calmed to an even happiness, focused more on Yang's presence than the impending monument. She took the subtle cold that still existed in the air as an excuse to move closer to Yang; no signs of definite affection could be seen by passersby aside from the taller girl's arm over her shoulder, but the affections existed doubtlessly.

This slow, even pace came to a gradual halt as the two neared a relatively small crowd amassing a distance from the statue. Blake had noticed the inching movements of the cars on the road beside them, but hadn't truly paid it any mind until she realized what the crowd was waiting for. Before the statue, acting as both the couple and the crowd's final obstacle before reaching it, was a road—a large roundabout as it were. Eventually, Blake and Yang slowed to a stop at a distance far enough away from the growing crowd that unease on the young Faunus' part could not set in. Blake was fairly confident that Yang was deliberate in keeping this distance.

It was immediately inferred that they and the crowd were waiting on some sort of signal to cross and that until that time came, a way to occupy one's time needed to be found. Since they had stopped and since Yang was such an amusing extrovert to be around, an idea of striking up a conversation, however superfluous, sparked in Blake's mind. Unfortunately, her smiling expression as she looked up to Yang was not missed by a member of the crowd ahead. The woman in question looked at Blake, scowled disgustedly, and began talking quietly to the person beside her.

Blake saw this response and faltered because of it. Her enthusiasm for conversation had dissipated completely. However, because she did not want to draw attention to either the woman or her own discomfort, she continued the initiated motion of looking up, but began inconspicuously looking around to the buildings above instead of speaking. She felt that in doing so, she would be able to get her mind off of the woman's look that only seemed to grow retroactively harsher by the second. This did not work as well as she hoped, causing her nonchalant gaze to become frantic and almost panicked.

Perceptive as ever, Yang seemed to take notice of this. She hummed, gaining Blake's attention. "I've always liked this place. Well, maybe not as a kid, but then again, what kind of kid likes to look at statues she's not allowed to climb on?" Blake's glances gradually lost their rapid pace and her analysis of the woman's look began to lose validity as Yang spoke. "I've never been out here after it rained, but I gotta admit, I think it looks better this way. I'm always up for a sunny day, but there's something about this weather. It makes it feel—I don't know—warmer?"

Blake expected to find Yang with a toothy grin due to what she believed to be a reference to their embrace, but instead found her looking around much like she had. Realizing her expectation and the lack of care now placed on that woman's look, Blake paused for a moment and then smiled. "It certainly feels that way, doesn't it?"

To some degree, Blake's response was meant as her own attempt at making reference to the embrace. To Yang's credit, she seemed far too engaged in the scenery to have gotten the joke. "Yeah. I mean, everybody looks miserable, but at least they look miserable together." Following where her partner had been looking, Blake saw a quaint café tucked into a street corner opposite their own. Even from her distance, she could see patrons hunched over their cups as they avoided speaking to one another while somehow seeming incredibly comfortable with their own present company. "Well, at least we're not miserable. And we're together! So the joke's on them, right?"

Blake looked up and laughed softly. In doing so, she was able to see the line of cars slow to a stop out of the corner of her eye. Yang returned her contented gaze in kind for a few long, peaceful seconds before taking notice of the moving crowd. Blake frowned momentarily—for what reason she could not be sure—before moving alongside her girlfriend.

While the other members of the crowd crossed in front of the stopped cars, the couple moved ahead towards the statue, Yang urging Blake to quickly make it to the opposite curb. Though Blake had very limited knowledge with roundabouts (once again relying on knowledge acquired from past literature and now previously seen pictures), she was almost certain that what they were doing was against some sort of rule in this particular instance. This idea was only reinforced by the two only just dodging an oblivious driver as they reached the statue. Blake looked at the car driving away before seeking Yang's attention. "Are we not supposed to be here?"

"Nah, probably not." Despite her admission, the blonde did not seem concerned at all. Rather, she began walking closer to the foot of the statue, bringing Blake with her.

"We should probably go back," Blake protested. "We might not be able to make it back to the sidewalk if we don't return now."

Yang looked down at her, making a show to move her eyes towards the road just behind them. When Blake looked back, the line of stalled cars had begun to move once again. "I think it might be a bit late for that," stated Yang.

Blake sighed, annoyed but not entirely frustrated. Figuring there was not much left she could do to remove herself from this legally ambiguous situation, she moved alongside Yang towards the foot of the statue, gazing up at it all the while. Standing before the couple was the golden representation of a decidedly important man. Though the statue was lifeless and of a singular, reflective color, something about the subject—his hair, his mustache, his expression; Blake couldn't be sure—exuded a definite age about him. Blake could imagine the greying complexion of the man who was eternalized in his faux-gold monument.

Yang headed for a plaque placed at the man's feet. Its presence was unexpected to Blake, but not necessarily off-putting. On the contrary, it relieved her to an extent to know that at some point a city planner had ordered this plaque to be placed here for the sole purpose of drawing people in to read it. They stopped before the plate, Yang leaning in to study it while Blake continued to gaze up at the figure.

Judging by the manner in which he folded his hands behind his back and the confidence that seemed to radiate off his appearance, Blake assumed that he would have a military background of some sort. Then again, he held an eternally serene smile. She was fairly certain that a war memorial would not have the lone figure smiling, but at the same time, she felt that the description was appropriate. What his smile meant intrigued her; the efforts of war usually prove to be less than altruistic, so the reason for his happiness was questionable. She could not remember an instance where a war hero was built a smiling, golden statue for his deeds. Perhaps it was a politicized monument rather than an actual monument. Blake sighed and looked to Yang, trying to get away from her tangential over-analysis.

Yang hummed in thought. "So, I guess this thing's a gift from Mistral for Vale helping them out a while ago." She leaned closer to the plaque, staring intently at something on it.

The statement caused Blake to raise an eyebrow. "You guess? I thought you came here when you were younger."

Yang returned with an incredulous look. "I was like seven, Blake. Do you honestly think I cared about history back then?"

Blake laughed. "Seeing as how you never fell asleep during Professor Oobleck's class, I wouldn't doubt it."

"How could I when the guy was flying across the room every second?" Blake laughed again, this time shaking her head, giving Yang enough time to return to her elaboration on the statue. "Anyways," she began, "apparently, a pretty important city in Mistral was attacked by the Grimm a long time ago and was almost destroyed. For years, Mistral's government threw everything it had at the problem, but nothing could stop the Grimm's attack. Somehow, Vale found out about this and sent over reinforcements. It doesn't say who the reinforcements were, but there were probably a lot of hunters and huntresses involved because with their help, Mistral won the fight."

This time, it was Blake's turn to hum in thought. "I think I remember learning about that war. Was that the one where the people of the city kept moving the outer walls into the city because the Grimm kept advancing?"

Yang gave her a flat look. "Blake, I'm just reading the plaque. This is all news to me."

"Sorry," Blake said, only just slightly disappointed with being unable to test her knowledge. "What else is written? Who is the statue of?"

Blake found herself pulled closer into the sideways hug as Yang continued to summarize. "I don't think it's of anybody that actually existed. The thing says that this was a gift from Mistral and the statue is a representation of Vale as a 'wise, loyal, and friendly kingdom.'"

The thoughts of the statue being a distastefully ironic recreation of an old general or politician were suddenly disproven. With this new information, the statue came to look less sinister and more benevolent by the second. Just as Blake was about to suggest moving on with the tour, Yang spoke again. "Wait," she squinted her eyes, "it says something else and I think it might be the name of this guy. Lind—whoa; I have no idea how to say that." She leaned even further forward, took a deep breath, and tried again. "Lin-dee-pen-dance do Ter-me. Yeah, I totally butchered that."

This piqued Blake's interest. Whatever Yang had said sounded vaguely, faintly like old Mistralian. The Faunus looked at the plaque, to the golden letters centered at the top of the slab of rock and read aloud, "L'Indépendance du Termi." It had been a long time since she last read the language, let alone speak it, so she was unsure of her pronunciation.

Yang blinked in disbelief. "What?" was all she could say.

Blake looked back in an expression purposefully unimpressed, but with an internal monologue cheering her memory. "It's in old Mistralian. It means 'The Independence of Termi.' Termi was the city Vale sent reinforcements to."

Raising an eyebrow, Yang looked to Blake. "That's cool and all, but how do you know old Mistralian?"

Blake shrugged. "I read."

Yang looked over at her, giving her an exasperated look. "I would've never guessed. Seriously, how?"

She shrugged again. "I'm not claiming I know it, I just studied the language years ago. For what it's worth, I probably butchered the pronunciation as well."

"Well, gee, thanks. That really makes me feel a whole lot better." Though her words could seem contextually bitter, Yang's growing smirk proved her demeanor to be quite the opposite. "You're such a show-off sometimes."

The thought of teasing Yang back by referencing the sunglasses she wore in battle from time to time occurred to her, but was decided against. Instead, Blake shook her head and said, "Come on, let's head back before we get in any sort of trouble."

"Fine, fine," dismissed Yang. Before Blake turned away, she looked once more at the statue, thinking about it in a different light. Satisfied with what she had learned here, the young Faunus with her girlfriend towards the curb of the island.

Without the statue before her, Blake's view became comparatively bleaker; all she could see was the endless stretch of asphalt darkened by rain and buildings of varying shades of brown. Almost everyone who was out, herself included, seemed to adhere to an exclusively muted color palette. However, with Yang and her sunny demeanor always in the corner of her eye, Blake never truly felt as though the setting in front of her was dreary. Rather, she found that being in the presence of her warm partner made the wait for the cars to stop to be quite a relaxing, serene experience.

At some point during their respite, Blake's head had come to rest against the blonde's shoulder. How long it had stayed there, she could tell. Unfortunately, she had only noticed her tilted view of the world when Yang abruptly said, "Okay, let's go." Before she could appreciate her position or even notice the stopped cars, Blake found herself running to reach the sidewalk on the other side of the road. This process would not take too long and was doubtlessly not taxing on her energy, but it was nonetheless a disorienting chain of events. However, she found her head resting the same way it had been with the only differences being that she could enjoy the closeness it induced and that they were now situated on the sidewalk rather than the center of the roundabout.

This new position, while naturally formed and indicative of the couple's sentiments, drew far more undue attention than their previous hold had. What had caused the disgusted look of one woman changed into an embrace that garnered myriad looks ranging from confusion to disdain and even outright loathing. Try as she might, Blake could not find complete safety in the idea that because she was with Yang—because she was in an ideal situation—she should not take heed of others' opinions on their relationship. She found that despite her efforts of being indifferent towards these people, they were getting to her and making her care more and more.

It seemed as though she was making direct eye contact with every person that passed her by. In their eyes, she could see them thinking the words "Monster", "Traitor", and even "Child". She could not differentiate the looks she was given because of her relationship from those she believed she was getting because of her heritage. As hidden as her Faunus traits were, she felt completely exposed to these people, inadvertently baring her soul to scathing gazes that persisted from horizon to peripheral. What she didn't notice was that at a consistently small distance away from the couple, the person looking at her would look forward obediently before quickly walking past, looking positively terrified.

Yang tightened the hold, diverting Blake's attention away from the scant number of passersby. "So, how's the jacket working out? It's not too heavy, is it?" Though Blake could not look up to see her face, she could practically hear the teasing grin from her voice.

Teasing tone or not, Blake had somehow come to forget that she was wearing the jacket. The initial feeling of comfort that she took from the fabric had not yet worn off, instead becoming such an ever-present sensation that it could dismiss any cold feeling or doubts that happened to arise. She smiled and closed her eyes, letting Yang guide her along as they walked. "It's great. Thank you for letting me borrow it."

"No problem." The teasing tone melted away and in its place came a genuinely happy one with what almost sounded like Yang becoming flustered. "I think it looks better on you anyways." Blake didn't much care if another person saw her blush at the compliment. This was Yang complimenting how she looked—this was high praise in Blake's mind. "Speaking of you," Blake couldn't help but internally sigh at this poor segue that immediately contradicted her previous thought, "how do you know old Mistralian again? And don't tell me that you read, because barely anybody knows how to speak that anymore."

Blake hummed her best representation of "I don't know" before thinking aloud. "I just happened to be interested in it one day and then I was hooked. There was something about the language that intrigued me." The look Yang gave her begged her to continue. "Any books I found that were written in old Mistralian were written well and flowed excellently. When I found someone who could teach me how say a few words in it, I found that not only did it look beautiful, but sounded beautiful as well. It never amounted to anything more than a hobby, though. As you said, hardly anyone speaks it anymore, so it would be pointless to continue learning."

"So learning a new language is a hobby for you?" She sounded amused, but somewhat disbelieving at the same time. "And here I thought building stuff was a productive pastime."

Blake laughed. "Yang, I could learn every language in the world and I still wouldn't have the faintest idea how to build a motorcycle." Her reassurance proved far more rewarding than originally expected. Not only did the action feel morally right, she could physically feel pride well from Yang in the form of her heat increasing momentarily.

She waited a few moments before speaking again, allowing Yang to bask in her praise if only for a second longer. "Since I was young, I've had a fascination with languages. The thought of becoming smarter with each learned language never crossed my mind, though. There were aisles of books in the local library back home that I couldn't read because they were written in different languages. I simply wanted to read more stories—to see the world from other perspectives—so I made it a point to learn those languages. Eventually, it formed into a full-fledged hobby, leading me to the point when I learned about old Mistralian."

A few seconds passed before Blake realized what she had said. She had only intended on giving Yang her reasons for knowing the language; the description of her childhood was unintended and she was unsure of how to react to this. On one hand, she desperately wanted to keep her old life separate from her new life, but on the other hand, she knew for certain that Yang could be trusted.

"I guess I understand. Well, if you studied languages for that long, how many do you know now?"

Blake found herself in a state of momentary disbelief. She had not expected anyone to care about her story, let alone show active interest. Because this was the present case, however, she was obliged to answer. "To be completely honest, I don't really 'know' any other languages. I used to be able to read a few and I could speak a bit of even fewer. I can apparently still read old Mistralian and pronounce a couple words, but I have no fluency in any of the languages."

"Still, it's pretty cool. They tried to teach us Atlan at Signal, but it never really stuck." Blake could feel the slight rise and fall of Yang's chest as she laughed sheepishly. "It would probably help to know it, but I guess I was too focused on Combat and Weapon Fabrication at the time."

Blake smirked. "At the time?"

"You know what I mean!" Yang sighed. "Besides, I have something better to occupy my time now."

Even with her amassed experience with Yang and her sense of humor, Blake was surprisingly oblivious to the statement's connotations. "And what might that be?"

"I don't know," shrugged dismissively, "it's just some girl. You might know her." Realizing who Yang was talking about, Blake blushed again, this time very much self-conscious of her flushed appearance but too flustered to do anything but clamp her eyes shut. "She has these really pretty eyes, she's really, _really _smart at things I didn't even know existed, she could probably take me down before we even begin sparring, and—oh, and did I forget to mention she's super hot too?"

Historically, Blake was not accustomed to being sincerely complimented. As such, she found it difficult to reply to this form of positivity that was given to her with anything other than a simple "Thank you." However, this specific response applied only to a singular compliment; Yang's description was both more extensive and meaningful, causing her to be unable to articulate an appropriate response. She believed that Yang knew this and had accounted for her present reaction. Blake was grateful and humbled by the praise, but at the same time, she knew that Yang must have been teasing her to some extent. For this reason, she willed her head off of her partner's shoulder so that she could send her a playfully defiant glare that lost any and all power behind it due to her heavy blush.

Blake saw clear conviction in her partner's eyes. The sight caused her challenging expression to nearly falter, but this was prevented by the simultaneous presence of her partner's subtle, impish grin. Before Blake could reply—rather, before she could form a proper response—Yang looked ahead and said, "We're here."

The young Faunus was immediately made curious and looked ahead. She had expected another stretch of road lined by off-white buildings and blooming neon signs hung along them. While this sight did exist, it could only be seen out of the corner of her eye. Fortunately, her attention was allocated solely to what was directly before her: the obvious 'here' in question.

Though it was the most organic place Blake had witnessed within the downtown districts of Vale, the park ahead was altogether more reflective than any of the manufactured structures she had seen thus far. Under the faint glow of an overcast day, everything within the park shined from the rain that had not yet evaporated. Both the grey of the crisscrossing concrete paths and the silver of the metal statues ahead looked to be of the same hue in this lighting. Even the leaves on the bordering trees and the grass of the fields shimmered with the passing of a soft breeze. It was hauntingly quiet; the ambient cacophony of the urban sprawl was gone, leaving the couple to hear only each other.

"Yang," Blake began, hesitant only due to the contrast between this place and the prior statue, "where are we? What is this place?"

She found herself moving forward, again being pulled along by Yang's horizontal grip. "Remnant Park," was her answer. "It's a memorial for a few of the more important battles from long ago with one statue for each war." Blake found that the path that they walked was leading them towards the first sculpture of what only appeared to be four or five within immediate view. "I actually know more about this place than the last since Ruby loved coming here as a kid. She never said why—actually, I never asked why—but I think I remember seeing her get really excited about this place after mom told her about the statues."

"She enjoys learning about the wars?" The idea wasn't too far a stretch, but Blake didn't believe it fit the young girl. She seemed to be engaged in her Grimm and History studies, but she suspected that Ruby's main reason for paying attention to these subjects was to get the upper hand in battle. Going to a park to learn about the wars at a young age did not lend itself to bettering her combat abilities.

Yang laughed. "No, no, no. I don't think Ruby listened to a single thing mom said about any of the wars after she was told that the statues were all made from swords." Blake looked at her with a raised eyebrow; elaboration was necessary. "Mom said that all of the statues here were made from the metal of fallen soldiers' weapons—at least, the weapons of the ones who didn't have families asking for the shield to be given back to them."

They stopped before the first sculpture, one depicting a soldier on horseback situated next to the corpse of what looked to be a Beowolf. "So, this," Blake began, noting the polished surfaces, "was completely made from recycled weapons?"

"That's what I was told. I thought that these were a bit too shiny to be made only from swords and shields, but I guess if you're going to make a monument for a war, you should probably do it right."

This sounded reasonable to Blake; besides, she wasn't going to question Yang's knowledge when it came to metalwork. If a group of people accomplished a great feat, she believed that they would have every right to commemorate it in some peaceful way and be proud of their achievement. Still, before she would accept the depicted feat as "great" or even noble in cause, she would like to know more about it. For this reason, she casually glanced at every angle of the statue visible from where she stood. Unfortunately, there was not a plaque to be seen.

Yang looked over at her attempts at nonchalant curiosity before looking back to the statue, smiling proudly. "This one is about our first war with the Grimm. Even though it was made hundreds of years after the war actually ended, they had to make the statue look really heroic so we could honor those who died."

"Well they certainly achieved a triumphant look with this." She thought that perhaps a comment on the inclusion of the fallen enemy was unnecessary. Yang seemed to enjoy this place. Because she did and because Blake enjoyed seeing her girlfriend's smile, she decided to counter her previous remark with one more positive in nature. "Yang, is there anything significant about the man riding the horse?"

Yang perked up at this question, smiling widely and showing that she was enthused to answer. "Yup! He's supposed to represent 'the combined efforts of humanity against the forces of evil', meaning he's not really anybody in specific. He's kinda…what's the word?" Her furrowed brows gave Blake the impression that her current thought was straining her. Unfortunately, she wasn't aware of where Yang was going with her story and thusly couldn't help. Fortunately, she didn't need to. "Got it!" Yang exclaimed. "He's like a metaphor for the good guys!"

Though Yang's expectant smile and attempt to relate her interests to Blake's was endearing, the Faunus could not help but giggle softly at the mistake. "Yang," she said, still laughing so that the mood would stay positive and Yang would not feel as though she was being insulted, "I think you mean he acts as an 'allegory.'"

Yang frowned, although not in a way that gave any indication of anger or legitimate despair. She groaned before laughing herself. "When are you _not _going to prove me wrong?"

Blake shrugged noncommittally.

"Fine," Yang groused playfully. "Let's see if you can prove me wrong on this next one." Before Blake knew what was happening, she found herself being pulled along the path once again, heading for yet another statue. They arrived quickly and Yang began. "This here is a representation of an ancient canon. Am I still right? Feel free to stop me anytime if I make a mistake."

She was still correct; the statue now before them was of an old cannon. Perhaps ancient was a bit too strong a word, but the technology was antiquated by this point. Still, the teasing, passive-aggressive way in which Yang replied warranted one of Blake's own. "Okay, Weiss," she responded nonchalantly.

Yang looked as though she was about to begin speaking when she suddenly stopped and shot Blake an amused glare. "That was a low blow," she stated before turning back to the statue. "Anyways," she began again, "this was the main weapon used in the war that created Vale in the first place. Everybody had rifles and swords by that point, but what really made the difference were cannons. The king's cannons knocked holes in the enemy's walls which allowed his men to seize the village that eventually became Vale."

Yang had left out a few major points in her summarization. Blake only thought this because she knew the story well. Were it any other king at the time, the town would have burned to the ground. Instead, though, the king at the time decided that since the opposition had put up such a good fight, he dedicated resources to improving the city. Eventually, he moved the capital of his kingdom here and named it after himself. But Blake would not say any of this. Yang seemed all too happy to be the source of information for once.

Yang looked to her inquisitively, apparently expecting some sort of correction. As Blake did not have one, she stared back in the same fashion. "What?" she asked. "You told me to stop you if you made a mistake."

Even the smallest smile from the blonde was radiant to Blake, but this one was more so than usual. As she maintained this expression, she looked to be in thought for but a fraction of a second before refocusing on Blake, saying, "Come on. There's one more thing I want to show you."

Surprisingly, Blake was not pulled along as she had been for most of the day. She smiled back at Yang, waiting for her to lead the way. "Well?" she asked expectantly.

The smile Yang held faltered for a few noticeable seconds before returning stronger than ever and accompanied with a laugh. While Yang's current demeanor and exuded aura were causing empathic reactions to take place, the analytical part of Blake's mind attached itself to the wavering emotion. She felt a push at her shoulders and automatically walked forward, but couldn't keep her mind off of what those few seconds meant.

The most immediate and concerning thought was that Yang was hiding something. Taking this assumption a step further, Blake entertained the possibility that Yang was doubtful in their relationship. Though this was objectively not the case, Blake had not come to this decision herself. This fluctuation occurred after Yang had told her that she wanted to show her something. This raised the questions: Was Yang hesitant to show her the referenced object? And if so, why?

These two questions spawned from the admittedly irrational premise that Yang was unsure about their relationship—rather, "unsure" could be replaced by "doubtful" or "unenthused", but Blake could not think of Yang this way. Her answer to these questions came in the form of the hours that the two had spent together as just friends and the time they had spent together as girlfriends. She argued against herself that because they had spent so much more time as friends than girlfriends, Yang might have become accustomed to their relationship at that time. Furthermore, a memory of Ruby telling her that Yang had "been through too many bad experiences" was recalled, causing her to assume that Yang felt the need to distance herself for her own safety—something that Blake could empathize with.

Yet the time they had spent today alone, walking through the city on a day where the streets were wet, the temperature was far below average, and the people were rude, proved to Blake without a shadow of a doubt that Yang was as committed to their relationship as she was.

Then what was the cause of that faltering smile? She thought for a second that it could have been contemplation, but she immediately ruled this out. She had seen Yang's "thoughtful" expression many times today and the look she had did not quite match. What it did match, however, was something that Blake was personally familiarized with.

On the morning of their first day as a couple, Blake had to will herself to even face Yang. The feeling of pressing herself to make the decision was adequately represented in Yang's questioned facial expression. Not only was this her assumption, but Blake believed that Yang was willing herself to do something. To what end, she could not be sure—only time would tell. Nevertheless, she felt that if the events of the day thus far were indicative of any decision to come, she would look forward to it with open arms.

As her analytical mind lost reason to dissect the situation any further, Blake was able to focus on what was ahead of them. She had anticipated these thoughts taking up some time, so she was not surprised when she was met with the next monument up ahead. What she was intrigued by was what the monument was. Unlike the other historical sites she had seen today, this monument was not a statue. What towered before them was a large, silver obelisk standing in what seemed to be the direct center of the park. Yang must have noticed her returned attention to the path before them. She said, "This is 'The Spire.' That's just what people around here call it, but really, it doesn't actually have a name. Go figure, it's another one of those 'symbolic representations' without a name."

The path they walked was leading them towards a corner of the obelisk, causing Blake to be unable to see if there was any sort of writing its sides. As such, she felt compelled to ask, "What does it commemorate?"

"It was built for those in wars long ago who we didn't know the names of as well as those who will eventually die in war." Blake frowned instinctively; the reason was rather bleak, but at the same time, it was interesting. She realized that this combination of intrigue and somberness was what one desired to achieve when visiting a monument like this.

"What about it do you want to show me?" Perhaps the question would take away the effect of any surprise that may come, but Blake would rather be prepared to console her girlfriend rather than it be sprung upon her. Some part of her expected Yang to know somebody who was honored by this monument.

The initial response she was given removed any worries she had. "I don't know. Every time I come here, I always remember everything about the trip. I can still see me standing next to mom and Ruby when we came here years ago." What had been a rueful smile turned to a warm one directed towards Blake. "I never want to forget this trip with you. And maybe if you see it, you'll never—" She stopped abruptly and began a new sentence, truncating any possibility of a desperate tone. "Anyways, come on. Let's go take a look."

"And maybe if you see it, you'll never forget this trip either," Blake finished in her mind. The thought was haunting. Did Yang believe that she would readily forget about the time spent with her? Yang had allowed her to forget her past life that she had longed to abandon, but couldn't bring herself to get away from. She had proven to be the best possible choice for a partner for her. Most importantly, she offered her a home and family when, for all intents and purposes, she had none. Blake would forget not forget today, nor would she forget any other day of this summer.

Blake didn't say anything in response—she knew that speaking wasn't her most honed skill in the world. Instead, to ease the distress that Yang must have been feeling, Blake wrapped the arm closest to the blonde around her back to find her opposite arm and entwined their fingers. Immediately, Yang let out a sigh of relief and flashed a smile Blake's way before moving around to one side of the obelisk.

Blake had originally thought that the structure was silver or chrome in appearance. However, from where she stood now, she could see that like everything else in the park, the surfaces were reflective, but far more than any of the other statues. It would not be hyperbole to state that the surfaces of the obelisk were comprised of mirrors. As soon as the two rounded the side of the structure, Blake was met with their reflected, embracing presences.

There were a great many things that caught her off-guard looking into the mirror, but it was her own expression that garnered her attention first. While she noticed that Yang had been smiling all day, Blake believed that her own appearance had been that of her regular, uninterested frown. The spectacle before her showed a version of her smiling shamelessly and perennially even though she could not feel her lips pulling upwards. She felt content as it was, but seeing herself this ecstatic was making her actual self emulate the shown emotions of the replica.

Her gaze then turned towards the reflection of Yang. As it did, Blake saw lilac eyes meeting her own in the reflection, causing reactions on both girls' parts reminiscent of timid children with innocent crushes. They each looked their separate ways with blushes flaring across their cheeks despite their embrace and the fact that they were already dating. Perhaps the reason for Blake's embarrassment was due to what she saw in those fleeting moments looking at not only her girlfriend's reflection, but her own as well.

The two in the mirror seemed so happy, so full of life that Blake had the same sensation she had felt reading many of her novels—the thought of "I wish that was me." What was wonderful about the sight was that for once, the person she desired to be was her and that she was living a life that she had yearned for. In those fleeting moments, Blake saw how beautiful Yang looked and how happy she seemed to be near her.

The thoughts of the morning were recalled, causing Blake to wonder what this prideful, excited, altogether blissful sensation was that she felt standing beside her girlfriend. She turned her gaze back towards the mirror, towards Yang's figure and met her eyes once again. This time, however, their stares did not break away from each other. Seeing the happiness that welled within the eyes of her partner caused Blake's breath to hitch. She knew that there was a word for what she was feeling and that it was on the tip of her tongue, but she could just not accept what it was.

Yang laughed, still looking at Blake through the mirror. "Yeah, I'm totally gonna remember this for the rest of my life." The two then turned their heads to look at each other directly. "Thanks for coming with me, Blake. Thanks for everything."

The subsequent seconds moved paradoxically quickly and slowly, being a period of time that was both far too fast for Blake's liking and slow enough to commit the moment permanently to memory. Whether it was by her own volition or Yang's nearing presence, Blake's head turned to face forward, causing her to watch the event unfold in the mirror. Yang had kept her head turned and had closed her eyes, unable to combat the feverish blush that graced her features. Her head lowered at an agonizingly slow pace, but even as it steadily descended, Blake could not fathom what Yang was doing until it happened. As much as Blake remembered about the event, she still does not remember whether she felt the warm, pleasant sensation on her head or if she saw Yang pressing her lips to the top of her head first. Either way, her recollection of her first experienced kiss from Yang gave her the answer she needed.

Love; she knew it to be fact. Everything about Yang, from her personality to her being was, in her mind, perfect. The warm aura she felt was home and the dreamy smile she was given as Yang rested her head atop her own was all the communication she could ever need. She was at a total loss for what to do, even if it was only a kiss on the head. The only thought that ran through her mind was the answer to her question. Love was that sensation and she felt it for Yang. Whole-hearted and unabashed love. She wanted to turn towards Yang, hold her close with both arms instead of one, and simply bask in the moment. Yet, all other motor functions had become unresponsive in her blissful stupor. She stared back into those amethyst gemstones that were Yang's eyes and treasured them, not knowing how long the moment was to last. She wanted to say something, anything, but couldn't; nothing would compare to the amount of compassion shown by that singular action. She wanted to cry, both out of joy at what she felt from the sight and out of sadness from not finding Yang sooner in her life. Yet all she could do was smile widely and openly at Yang.

The blonde sighed happily and laughed that musical laugh she always did, somehow causing the grin on Blake to widen even further. "I think we've visited enough monuments today. Why don't we go get lunch? I'm getting a bit hungry."

The blush on Blake's face could not fade away and she did not care about this fact in the least. She, too, laughed, causing Yang's smile to widen. Her own laugh, however, was less composed than Yang's in that the only word that could aptly describe the noise she made when laughing would be goofy. She had to force herself to reply and get over her momentary lapse in control. Her response came in the form of a stuttered, stupefied, "Y-Yeah, s-sure."

Yang nestled her head closer to Blake's as they turned down the path again and out into the city. This time, the two would walk just an extra bit closer on the way to their destination.

* * *

Hopefully the general happiness of this chapter came across well and contrasted the angst of chapter seven appropriately. If it felt as though much didn't go on in this chapter, that is what I was going for. While this is not meant to be a "filler" chapter (there was critical advancement to Blake and Yang's relationship), I thought that after the exposition in the last chapter, the story needed to calm down a bit before the lead-up into Act III. As such, I felt that a dreary, rainy setting would work well in this regard. Hopefully it turned out all right. As I said in the note at the beginning of the chapter, there were odd tonal shifts that I tried to iron out and rewrite.

Concerning the backstory of the historical landmarks, I do not intend for their descriptions to drastically separate the version of Remnant I use for this story and the canonical Remnant in the series. The purpose of these descriptions is to prelude the liberties I am going to take with both setting and character backstories in the chapters to come. If Blake and Yang's visits to these monuments came across as meaningless in the long run, then this would be fairly accurate. Admittedly, these monuments and their histories serve as precedent to what changes I am willing to make to the world. I hope that they aren't too outlandish and are able to be at least humored for this story.

One such change was the language I used for ancient Mistral. I apologize to any French readers if I wrote the title of the first statue incorrectly. It has been years since I last studied the language and I expect that I made some error in translation. If I did, I apologize and would welcome any corrections.

Finally, I must remark about the release of the next chapter and when I expect it to come out. At the end of the last chapter, I promised that this chapter would be released a month at most after. It has been two months since chapter seven has posted. I do not expect chapters to take this long to complete since I no longer have the obstacles in my way that I use to. However, I cannot guarantee any sort of concrete schedule. As with before, I will release the chapter two days after it is completed (These two days will allow me to correct grammar, continuity, and any other errors I find.). The chapter will be tentatively "complete" and be set for corrections when I feel that everything that should be in it is present and whole. The length it takes for this to happen is completely fluid. If I have a spark of inspiration, I could get the next chapter done within two weeks; if I come to be annoyed by the chapter and its contents, this will take significantly longer.

One thing must be made perfectly clear, though. I will not abandon this novel. I've given up one of my novels before and it haunts me to this day. Ever since, I have never once given up on a story I've begun to write. _Valence_ will receive the same treatment and will be completed.

Thank you for your patience. Stay safe and stay tuned.


	9. Chapter 9: Distance

Welcome back! I hope everyone is doing well. I'm certainly feeling that way now that I can post this chapter and end the wait. Mostly, I'm glad that this chapter did not take as long to finish as the last (I am still incredibly sorry for the wait for that, by the way.).

I shouldn't say much about this chapter yet; I'll leave elaborations for the end notes. However, there are two things I would like to say beforehand. First, I'd just like to remind everyone that there is a link to the PDF versions of this chapter on my profile should the Fanfiction format prove inconvenient. Second, I would like to warn that this chapter has a lot to it. For the sake of not spoiling anything, I will leave my warning at that.

Before I take my leave, I must thank you all for your continued readership. When I made the author's note at the end of chapter seven that told of my departure from my previous upload schedule, I felt as though I was betraying all of you. It was this thought that prolonged the time it took to get chapter eight written. However, after I posted the chapter, the response you all gave was simply incredible and reminded me that you were still there. I cannot say it enough times, but thank you. All of you are truly amazing.

I leave you with chapter nine of _Valence_.

* * *

Chapter 9: Distance

"No, Yang; 'admiralable' is not a word."

"Yeah it is! I've totally heard you say it before!"

Blake raised an eyebrow at the blonde. She held this look until she felt that her incredulity was adequately conveyed. "No. I seriously doubt I've said that before."

"Sure you have!" Yang insisted. "You use it when you say something like, 'Yang, that attack was a bit rushed, but the enthusiasm was admiralable,' or something like that." Her voice dipped into a bored monotone during her apparent quote, causing Blake to tilt her head to the side.

"Is that what I sound like to you?" She wasn't angry at the apparent mimicry; rather, she was having difficulty maintaining an indifferent demeanor and fending off a laugh that so desperately wanted to escape.

Yang scoffed. "You shouldn't be worried about what _I_ think you sound like. Ask Weiss. I'll bet you'll get a kick out of her impression. It's kind of amazing."

At times, Yang proved that her ability to distract her partner from the many negativities of the world was not always used for selfless purposes. Seeing that this was currently the case, Blake smiled and shook her head. "Anyways," she began, "the word you were thinking of was 'admirable.'"

Yang gave an incredulous look of her own. "No, I'm pretty sure it's 'admiralable.' 'Admirable' just doesn't make any sense."

"And how does your word make more sense than my word?" Blake was genuinely intrigued. She knew her partner was wrong, but she felt that there was a good—or at least humorous—reason why Yang defended her word the way she did.

"Blake, I'd expect you of all people to know why," Yang said in a jokingly condescending tone. Blake rolled her eyes in response. "'Admiralable' is said about an action that's good enough for the person doing it to be made an admiral in the Navy."

Blake stopped walking, causing Yang's arm to slip from her shoulder as she unintentionally continued on. When Yang eventually stopped and looked back, Blake saw no traces of facetiousness in her expression. As such, she found the explanation absurd enough to openly laugh despite her numerous attempts to hide her mirth. This caused Yang to furrow her brows and ask, "What?"

It took a few seconds for Blake's laughter to taper off. Once she was able to catch her breath, she asked, "Did you really think I was telling you that your enthusiasm was enough to make you an admiral?"

"Well, when you say it like that, I guess not." For the briefest of moments, Yang's eyes casted downwards before meeting Blake's confidently.

That momentary falter was all the proof Blake needed to show that Yang was taken aback. Shaking her head, Blake closed the distance between herself and her partner before taking hold of a gloved hand. "Yang, I was complimenting you when I said that." Yang raised an eyebrow, apparently not completely sold on the idea. Blake smiled and said softly, "Yang, 'admirable' is a description given to someone when there is something to be admired about the other person."

Yang's eyes widened for a moment, causing any remaining look of sadness to disappear instantly. "Oh," she said simply. "Yeah, that makes a lot more sense." She seemed surprised. This thought was only added to by her contemplative "Huh" that made Blake begin to think that the blonde was taking this as some sort of life-changing revelation. She felt the need to ask how long Yang had used 'admiralable' instead of 'admirable', but decided against it for the sake of politeness.

"Yang?" she called, an attempt to bring the girl back to reality.

Lilac orbs shifted down to meet her amber. "Yes, Blake?"

"Are you all right?" She doubted that it would be the case, but Blake was concerned if she had managed to insult her in some way.

Yang neither spoke nor moved for a few seconds. Suddenly, her expression shifted back to her regular, care-free attitude. "Yeah, why do you ask?"

"Yang, if I hurt your feelings, I apologize. Insulting you was not my intent." There was something odd about the girl at that moment. Blake could see an almost invisible glimmer in her eye; whatever that glimmer meant, she could not be sure, but she felt safe in the assumption that it was not altruistic.

Yang let out a short chuckle before throwing her arm over Blake's shoulder. She continued their walk along the promenade, bringing a wary Faunus with her. "You worry too much, Blake. You need to lighten up a little." She let out a laugh similar to the one before. "Though I will admit, you look cute when you get worried." As Blake rolled her eyes, her cheeks flushed at the compliment. "I dare say," she began. At that moment, the prior complement became inconsequential as Blake braced for the next words to come out of Yang's mouth, expecting them to have some sort of teasing edge. She continued, "you look very admirable when you're worried."

This was not quite what Blake expected her to say. In actuality, she didn't quite know if the comment was a compliment or playful jab, causing her to ask exasperatedly, "What is that supposed to mean?" Yang grinned widely and looked over at her. Before she could say anything, Blake sighed, "Wait. Do I want to know?"

The grin never faltered. "It means I'm making fun of you, Miss Know-it-all."

Blake sighed again; this time, however, she did so while smiling and shaking her head as she looked back at Yang. "Of course. How could I expect any less from you?"

"Hey!" Yang moved her head away and gave yet another incredulous look. "What is that supposed to mean?" she mimicked in the same monotone voice she used before. The two erupted into a fit of laughter that did not relent until they found each other's eyes. There were a few seconds where nothing happened between the two except for this impromptu staring contest that was intended to be facetious but ended much differently.

Initially, Blake could only stare back into Yang's eyes with competitive intent, but as the seconds ticked away, she found herself gazing in awe at the beauty, the depth, and the memories held within the wonderful abyss of her shining, lilac irises. She saw the joy they had shared—the kiss she had been given next to the reflective monument—and the time they had spent together, not only today, but since they first met at the end of the previous summer. She saw a future, a chance of what could be, within that violet hue. It was not the future she had intended when she joined the White Fang, but instead it was the opportunity for personal salvation and inimitable happiness that was so utterly appealing. What she saw was Yang Xiao Long—her best friend, her girlfriend, and the single-most important person in her life—staring back at her with what was believed to be reciprocated love.

Indeed, Yang gazed back at her, an otherwise absent-minded expression on her countenance. Though the sentiments behind the look were decidedly not absent-minded, this is what the scant passersby understood the look to be. Between the soft, but not at all concerning blush that Blake held and the unabashedly joyful grin of Yang, it was no wonder those who saw the young couple seemed uncomfortable and felt as though they were interrupting something private. While Blake knew that they were unintentionally intruding, she didn't much mind; her attention was focused solely on Yang.

It felt to Blake as though they were gradually moving closer to one another. She could practically see their faces inching nearer with each passing second. She had an idea of what ends this action would reach, but by this point she welcomed it. She refused to unlock her gaze from Yang's, too intent on pursuing her spur-of-the-moment idea of communicating how deeply she cared for the blonde through this look alone. She hoped that through a miracle instance of telepathy or perceptive clairvoyance on Yang's part, her love would be noticed before the expected action.

Unfortunately, she was disappointed when their supposedly nearing faces were ceased in their movements by Yang's widening smile. The look her partner now had was not of the affectionate stupor Blake had found herself in but of her typical, sunny confidence. Seeing this, Blake knew that her expectations were hers alone and proved to be nothing more than optimistic fantasies. Their faces had not moved closer and, in hindsight, she saw no indication that their shared gazes could have evolved into anything else. Seeming to solidify this notion and prove that the expected action could not have arisen from this instance, Yang said, "C'mon. I know where we can go next," before placing her arm over Blake's shoulder and ushering her along.

She was not disappointed in what had not occurred and she certainly was not disappointed in Yang. Rather, Blake was disappointed in herself for souring her own mood. Their lunch had gone spectacularly in her opinion. Neither had seemed uncomfortable about the kiss in front of the monument at all. Almost immediately after they sat down, they resumed their comfortable rapport with greater enthusiasm than usual. Their conversation at the small restaurant had continued on into their aimless stroll through the city as they questioned each other's apparent neologisms. The day seemed to be going better than expected until Blake decided to make outlandish wishes. She set her hopes according to what she believed was going to happen. When the kiss never came, Blake became disappointed and found herself the sole cause of this.

Her head hung in thought as her gaze became fixated on the varying patterns of the cobbled path below. She knew that perhaps now was not the proper time to indulge in introspection, seeing as how her girlfriend was beside her (and potentially wanting to continue their conversation) and the numbers of passersby were increasing exponentially now that the rain was drying. However, she desperately needed to collect her thoughts and did so anyways.

She began with the question of if the expected kiss could have plausibly occurred. The root of her anticipation, she found, was based in the thought that because Yang had done a similar action earlier, it was feasible that she would repeat the action but in a more intimate manner. Thinking back on this, Blake realized that what was considered a "normal" kiss had a relatively vast difference in supporting affection from a kiss on the top of the head. She was able to answer her initial question with the idea that because Yang had kissed her on the head only a short time before, it was not at all reasonable to believe that she would actually kiss her so soon after.

Of course, this lead to the instant, irrational question: since Yang didn't kiss her, were her affections not as sincere as she expected? Just as quickly, Blake dismissed the thought. She had made her judgments already and knew that while her partner put on a strong façade in times of duress for those around her, Yang would not lie about something so important.

She then turned the inquiry around on herself. She had witnessed first-hand Yang's affections for her, so she knew that the blonde was comfortable to some extent in their relationship. Perhaps the length of their impromptu staring contest was an invitation for Blake to initiate the kiss. The next irrational step to explain why the kiss never occurred was to blame her own timidity and inexperience with relationships. Though she felt at times like she was fumbling through her first relationship, she never once felt incompetent about it. Now, though, she found herself asking a difficult question. She knew without a shadow of a doubt that if there was any person that she would want as a first kiss, it was Yang. Yet she didn't react to the supposed invitation. Was she not confident enough in their relationship? Did she truly love Yang?

At the very least, she was thankful for the girl who brought her out of her potentially self-destructive thoughts. Yang tightened her grip momentarily. "Hey," she said, drawing Blake's attention to her, "is something wrong? You seem more quiet than usual."

Blake turned her attention forward and sighed. "No, it's nothing." She thought that this response created more questions than answers and thusly turned back to Yang and gave her an appeasing smile. "Don't worry, I'm fine."

However, her attempts to create her own façade were subverted by a single eyebrow raised in knowing care. As they walked, Yang stared questioningly back at Blake. "Would you mind if I ask?"

Blake sighed again. Why did she bother hiding these things? Yang always seemed to know if something was amiss when it came to her. In most situations, this was a great attribute of the blonde; unfortunately, this was one of the few cases where her perceptiveness proved to be inopportune. "I'd rather you didn't," Blake replied. While she wanted to be as open as possible with her girlfriend (barring any reference to her life before and during her involvement with the White Fang), she was hesitant to share information that she was not entirely sure about herself.

Yang shrugged and smiled. "Fine. You'll come around eventually, anyways."

Blake hoped that this would be the case. She was not only confused about her current feelings for her partner, but she was nervous about admitting the sentiments she had realized at the monument if they proved to be correct. Unfortunately, the volumes of romance novels she had read throughout her life gave conflicting information, leaving her in the dark as to what she should do. In most instances, the books portrayed a character who was so confident in his or her feelings that the proclamation of them proved to be an incredibly simple matter that was rewarded both instantly and without obstacle. However, there were a few stories where the main character was so timid and so afraid of rejection that the proclamation would exist exclusively in the final scene of the novel.

She considered herself to be neither of these. She knew that the books she read contained only fictional events, generalizations, and satire on what actual relationships were like. Yet without them as a guide, Blake knew that the answer to her question required more personal reflection than literary reference. It would not be impossible by any means, merely tedious and mentally strenuous.

Hearing the sound of moving cars, Blake was brought back into the realm of reality once more. Ahead was a street and beyond that, a corridor similar to the one the two currently walked. Assuming that Yang planned on them crossing this road, Blake figured that a break from introspection was in order for the time being. In the action's stead, she admired her surroundings.

Despite the small, infrequent crowds in and around the numerous restaurants of this particular corridor, Blake fared well and had not yet suffered from anxiety or stress brought about by memories. Of course, the warm presence at her side was a strong reason why she could enjoy this place. With the casually distracting conversation and the sheer joy felt from it, Yang made it possible for Blake to ignore the world around her for just long enough to move away from the crowds.

Blake halted her thoughts and blinked a few times. She had somehow managed to bring her thoughts back to the subject of Yang when she had already decided to cease the pursuit of her question's answer. This was not frustrating per say—thoughts of Yang were hardly troublesome—but instead it was annoying enough to make her sigh. Unfortunately, she believed this action could have inadvertently drawn Yang's attention—an event she wanted to avoid to keep her mind off of the answer. To preemptively truncate any possible conversation, she made herself seem distracted by looking up at the sky. She knew that it was awkward, but she believed that this action would be worth it if she could avoid conversation that could potentially bias her self-reflection.

Understanding that maintaining her current line of sight was necessary for convincing Yang that she was not deep in thought, Blake attempted to relax herself and let her mind rest while she simply watched the clouds. No longer was there an overcast sky; the thick cloud layer of the past few hours had dissipated and all that remained now were streaks of silver shining under the sun's rays. Watching their lazy crawl in the wind was an incredibly serene experience for the young Faunus. This was only added to by the similar speed and direction of her stroll and the sunny, warm figure walking beside her.

Again, Blake blinked in bewilderment. Her thoughts had somehow segued from cloud coverage to her girlfriend. However that happened, she was not sure, but she was nonetheless baffled.

The street was now only a small distance away, allowing Blake to nonchalantly level out her vision and move her focus to what lay ahead. However, out of the corner of her eye, she could see Yang looking at her. She did her best to respond with a slight, disarming smile, but judging by Yang's reply to this, she figured her partner had been aware of her previous actions. "Having fun yet?" Yang teased. Blake's only reaction was a sheepish, apologetic laugh which caused Yang to lightly chuckle herself. "So, I guess I'm still not allowed to ask?"

Blake sighed. "I'm sorry, Yang. I know I'm a bit distracted right now, but I'm trying to sort something out. If I'm making you uncomfortable, I could stop and—"

Yang's eyebrows raised in alarm before she cut her off. "Oh, no. No, it's fine. I'm just checking to make sure you're all right is all." Now it was her turn to laugh nervously. "Sorry I interrupted. If anything, I was worried that I was making _you_ uncomfortable."

Hearing this allowed Blake to laugh—not the nervous sound that she had made before, but an honest, mirthful laugh. In doing so, she released a breath that she did not realize she had been holding. With that breath went the importance she had attached to maintaining an emotional distance for the sake of keeping her answer unbiased. She saw now that she could laugh and say "Don't worry about it. I'd rather spend time with you instead," without feeling constricted to forced mental exercises. She found that simply acting natural around her partner for the time being brushed away the chances of extraneous thoughts shifting to a singular subject. She realized that the answer to her question was comparatively unimportant when she could be enjoying the present moment instead.

As she rested her head against Yang's shoulder, she could both hear and feel the blonde say, "Well that's good to hear. It's better than walking around during a date and not saying anything, that's for sure." It certainly felt more comfortable to Blake as well. Though, she knew that this only meant delaying the thoughts for a later time. Until then, she did her best to enjoy Yang's presence as much she could.

The couple came to a stop at the street's curb. Unlike the last time the two had stopped before a crosswalk, there was no crowd that could possibly send back caustic looks. This absence allowed Blake to feel at ease with nuzzling closer to Yang in public despite the sea of traffic that roared in front of them. Being as close to the warm figure as she was, she couldn't bring herself to much care about anything other than her girlfriend. For this reason, she was able to close her eyes and tune out the sounds of the world as they were permitted to cross the street.

When she next opened her eyes, Blake was greeted by a stretch of shops and boutiques held within this new corridor. Her gaze was immediately drawn to the numerous restaurants and cafés in the verandas above, making her wonder what the view would be like from that height and how it would feel to simply sit down and absent-mindedly chat the day away with her girlfriend at one of the tables. They wouldn't need to order anything—they had only just eaten lunch—but could instead gaze down upon the mass of window-shoppers that had emerged after the rain began to evaporate. On second thought, a seated position like the one imagined would only keep her from being as close to Yang as she currently was.

Ahead were those window-shoppers of unintelligible conversation. There was something about these people—their preoccupation, their overall pleasant demeanor—that caused Blake to not see them as hostile in any way. In a rare occurrence, Blake felt at ease amongst a crowd. Whether this was because of Yang's presence or the crowd members being interested at the various shops, Blake was able to publicly display her affections for her girlfriend. As she leaned against Yang, she looked past the shoppers and towards the distant exit of this corridor.

Where they were headed, Blake wasn't sure. She didn't ask because, as Yang had proven before, she would most likely receive an answer with either a proper noun or personal landmark that she would be expected to know. Regardless of where they were going, Blake trusted Yang and let the blonde lead her through the crowd.

There were a number of noticeable differences between where the two exited out into and the corridor they left behind. Chiefly among these differences was the general openness of this new area. What once had been a sky limited by the rising buildings on either side of the Faunus became an open environment with clouds that were once again visible and rooftops that were hardly obscuring. The crowd had much more space to disperse, creating a vast disparity between the cramped walkway of the corridor and the spacious square in which they now stood. Perhaps the most striking means of displaying this place's openness was the intimidating immensity of the building in this plaza's center compared to the shops surrounding it.

What this building lacked in height, it made up for in grandeur. Even if the roofs at the precipice of the square towered above this neoclassical structure, the air of importance given off by its aesthetics drew any and all attention in the vicinity to it. It was this building that had been able to distract Blake from her girlfriend; had it not been here, it is doubtful that the young Faunus would have noticed their movement into a new area as quickly as she had. While the sight of the building was visually intriguing, its presence caused Blake to wonder if it had been Yang's intended destination. Such a place might be considered a site of historical significance or perhaps governmental importance. If either was the case, then Blake believed that their tour would continue.

"Yang?" she asked, causing the blonde to look towards her. "Where are we?"

Yang smiled back. However, the way in which she smiled had not been what Blake expected. Between the toothy smile and the knowing gaze directed towards the building, this grin made her partner's underlying mischievousness obvious. Blake had only a second to wonder what the look meant before Yang replied almost giddily, "The Vale Museum of Art History."

Blake was suddenly aware that their tour had just been postponed for as long as it would take for Yang to tease her intended target. Judging by the conversation she had walked in on this morning, she initially supposed that Weiss would be spared, but she knew Yang well enough to know that she would not squander an opportunity like the one before her now. Blake assumed that her plan was to wait until their teammates emerged from the building. Unfortunately, she hadn't the slightest clue as to when that would be. Fortunately, Yang said, "Ruby and Weiss should be out any minute now. I want to see what exactly is going on with those two. I've got inside knowledge that somebody is going to do something somewhere."

Despite answering Blake's unexpressed inquiry, the response created additional questions that she felt the need to ask. She managed to ask all of the questions that now plagued her mind with a simple, "What is that supposed to mean?"

Keeping the toothy grin prevalent, Yang rolled her eyes, showing her unrestrained excitement for whatever it was she had planned. "Blake," she seemed to chide, "I have to keep some secrets to myself. It adds to my mysteriousness." She winked. On some level, Blake felt that the latter statement was meant as a teasing remark towards her and her reserved personality. She understood that she might have been perceived as purposefully enigmatic, but she had only meant to keep to herself. Still, she was able to take this apparent jab in stride while giving Yang a playfully reprimanding look. It seemed that this did not affect the blonde because she considered, "Besides, it's not like I have a choice or anything. It's not my secret to tell."

Raising an eyebrow, Blake asked, "You do realize that you have already told me the basic outline of what's to come, right?"

Yang shook her head and laughed. "I said that somebody was going to do something, but that doesn't mean anything. A lot of people do a lot of stuff a lot of the time!"

"Considering that we're waiting on Ruby and Weiss, it would be safe to assume that the 'somebody' you were talking about is one of them. And judging by how eager you look right now, that 'something' might have happened while they were visiting the exhibit. Am I correct so far?"

Yang laughed again. "Blake, you're over-thinking this. I have no idea what you're talking about. I didn't even know that they were going to any sort of exhibit." The two then smiled at each other.

If one thing could be guaranteed about Yang it was that she knew where her sister was at all times. Her confession of ignorance only proved to Blake that she was correct in her assumptions. Whatever had happened earlier this morning caused Yang to promise to not talk about what was apparently going on within the museum. However, the fact that she was granted access to this information showed that Yang trusted her to at least keep a secret. For this, Blake smiled warmly. She could only hope that her thoughts of probable love could be confessed as easily as this secret was.

Their gazes remained locked for a few moments before Yang's was distracted by something behind Blake. When she looked to the cause of the disruption, she found a street clock with the second hand nearing what was to be a new minute. As soon as it rounded the twelve, Yang said, "Showtime."

This single word alerted Blake to the new direction that Yang looked. At the center of the four white columns of the museum could a door be seen opening. Even from the couple's distance, the sight of two figures of red and white walking out of the exhibit stood out amongst a crowd of a bland, monotonous palette. The impish grin that had spread across Yang's face forewarned Blake to their forward movement towards their teammates. As the distant two descended the steps of the building, they seemed to be blissfully unaware of the approaching couple. Though, Blake was sure that Weiss would eventually notice their approach. Ruby, however, seemed as though she would remain unaware.

The young girl's head hung low—not enough to definitively show discomfort that Weiss would be able to perceive, but just enough that Blake was able to tell that something was wrong. Still, she managed to keep a rather upbeat look about her. Despite seeming upset, she looked happy. All of these observations, however, occurred at a sizable distance from the team's leader, forcing the Faunus' mind to wander and hyperbolize. These musings led her to believe that her leader's happiness was in some way caused by the time she had spent with her icy partner. Of course, she also believed that the apparent distress had a similar cause. Then again, these thoughts could simply reflect the joy that Blake felt from being around Yang all day.

Navigating the square's crowd was far easier than many of their other instances had been since this area had neither the small size nor the large population to allow for over-crowdedness. Yet the area was large and had enough of a population to make it difficult for the other partnership to notice their approach. Both Blake and Yang kept their eyes trained on Ruby and Weiss respectively as the shorter duo descended the large staircase. Their intentions for watching their teammates were assumed to be different; while Blake was concerned for Ruby and was watching for any signs of distress, Yang seemed to track the heiress with a nearly predatory demeanor.

The two lost sight of their teammates for a moment when Ruby and Weiss reached the bottom of the stairs. The weaving movements through the masses slowed to an almost stealthy pace. Blake could not help but reflect upon the conversation between Yang and her sister that she admittedly had eavesdropped upon. Remembering that Yang had said she would leave Weiss alone for the day, Blake was aware of her partner's intent to break the promise and tease the heiress nevertheless. The grin that the blonde held told her that she saw an opportunity and was not going to let it slip by.

Soon enough, the couple broke through the crowd and was met with a clear line of sight to Ruby and Weiss. However, while they could see the other partnership, the other partnership could not see them yet, allowing Yang to give Blake a short, reassuring smile before garnering the attention of the unaware duo.

"Hey guys!" she yelled as she walked towards them, waving the hand that was not over Blake's shoulder. "Fancy meeting you here!"

Ruby and Weiss' reactions were so different and so typical of who they were that Blake could not stifle a giggle. Ruby quite literally jumped as she squeaked, "Yang!" This action seemed to rid her expression of any remaining bothers besides surprise. Weiss, on the other hand, simply turned on her heel with a raised eyebrow before sending a subtle glare Yang's way. At no point in time did any one member of the team pay heed to the offended or surprised reactions by others around them. Blake expected that because of Weiss' calm—if not unamused—demeanor, she would be the one to respond. However, it was Ruby who hurriedly asked, "Yang, what are you doing here? I-I thought you were going on a tour."

Yang shrugged. "Yeah, we did. We actually just got done. How 'bout you? How was the art?"

"Isn't there anywhere else you wanted to go? You've still got a few hours of daylight left! Vale's a big city and it could take days to see everything!" Ruby's frantic reaction was both humorous and telling to the Faunus. "I mean, you don't have to go if you don't want to. It's just that…" She trailed off and eventually groaned, accepting her current predicament and causing Blake to raise an eyebrow.

The first part of her reaction made Blake think that she and Yang were impeding on something she had planned. The latter part of her reaction, however, allowed Blake to realize that the "distressed" state she had seen Ruby in was a mix of uncharacteristic frustration and disappointment. Unfortunately, she could not know the cause of this due to her lack of knowledge of what happened within the exhibit. This is not to say that she necessarily wanted to know—she understood that what happened between the two was probably too personal for them to readily share—but she was at least curious about what managed to frustrate Ruby, the cheeriest person and most adaptive fighter she had ever met.

Weiss sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose, catching Blake's attention but surprisingly not Yang's. She looked to Blake with a bored look that seemed to almost plead for help. "She's been acting this way since we arrived. She will not tell me what is wrong no matter what I say."

From her relaxed speech and direct eye contact, Blake believed Weiss' testimony was intended for her to hear. However, it was Yang who questioned this; not to Weiss as Blake would have done, but to the one who had allegedly been unwilling to speak about whatever plagued her. "Ruby, is something wrong?" Her playful, predatory demeanor had vanished and in its stead was undeniable care evident in her tone.

"Huh? Yeah! Everything's fine! Why would something be wrong? There's nothing wrong! Everything's perfect, actually! Just perfect!" With every word said by the young girl, Yang's grip on Blake's shoulder became tighter and tighter until finally she released her hold to fold her arms in front of her. This pose was accompanied by a concerned stare that caused Ruby to laugh nervously.

In a very slight, subtle way, the look Weiss sent to Blake changed. Nothing about her physical appearance had been altered, but rather it was the air of annoyance that radiated off of her. This change told Blake all she needed to know about what was going on with the two. Weiss was telling her that Ruby had been acting this way for a while and that it never failed to provoke her irritability. However, it also told Blake that Weiss' reaction had been limited to purely exasperation and never outward aggravation. This was simply Weiss looking to communicate her ire to someone who might understand.

"Ruby?" Yang asked. The weak façade of happiness that the leader held was pitiful in its ability to conceal her fearful expression. Blake believed it was this look from Ruby that caused her sister to hesitate in her inquiry. "Is there something—Hey, do you think you could help me out? I…uh, there's something wrong with Ember Celica and maybe you could find out what's going on. I think we might need to see about buying a replacement part, but I don't know."

It was a hastily made diversion that was obvious in its design—perhaps Ruby couldn't interpret the meaning, but it was clear to Blake what the blonde meant. Unfortunately, it's purpose seemed to be getting Ruby to confide in Yang by getting Ruby alone. The reason why this is unfortunate for Blake was because this would mean that she would have to spend time away from Yang.

Ruby perked up at this. "Yeah, sure! Here, let me see—"

Yang shook her head, cutting her off. "No, not here. I think it'd be best if we found a shop first, just in case. I don't want to accidentally burn down the museum, you know?" Blake watched as her girlfriend tried to get her point across to her sister in a way that was fairly subtle yet very obvious at the same time.

Unfortunately, this message was not received. "Okay? I mean, sure, we could do that, but I think I know what I'm doing."

The blonde groaned. "No, Ruby. _Really_. We should really _go_ _and find a shop_. I didn't see one anywhere near here, so we'd probably have to _take a walk_ to find one." At this point, Yang was making her intentions overt and emphasized. If Ruby didn't pick up on what her sister was trying to get her to do, then Blake would be seriously concerned for her wellbeing.

Ruby sighed. "Yeah, all right. Sure. But what about Blake and Weiss? Are they coming with us?"

As much as Blake would have liked to accompany them—if only to spend even more time beside her girlfriend—she knew that this would not be the case. She was not prepared for the ache she felt when Yang looked over to her with a sad smile. This look all but confirmed her suspicions. "Sorry, Blake," she said softly, keeping the conversation between the two of them, "but I gotta do this. I just need to make sure she's all right—she seems pretty shaken up."

Blake took a measured breath to compose herself. "Don't worry about it," she said. "Take care of your sister. I wouldn't want to make you feel guilty about not helping her." Contradictory to her words, Blake wanted to do whatever it took to keep Yang close. But she knew that her partner had to go and wouldn't stop her. Though, she did ask, "How long do you think it will take to calm her down?"

"Probably an hour, two at most. We're just gonna walk around until she's back to normal." Blake felt that her concealment of her discomfort was more than sufficient, but Yang must have picked up on it, for she gave a reassuring smile before continuing. "We'll meet back up here in two hours, okay?"

Two hours. Blake could make it two hours without being around Yang. She had done it before. She had gone seventeen years without being near Yang. It wouldn't be that hard. Regardless of these thoughts, insurmountable doubt made its way into her tone. "Yeah, okay."

There was a moment's pause where Yang looked to be thinking about something. What that something was, Blake wouldn't be able to surmise in her already forlorn state. Fortunately, she would not have to deduce much as she found herself quickly wrapped in the warm embrace of a hug. She let her worries drift away for a moment as she breathed in the smell of lavender and melted into the hold. "Sorry about this, kitten," she felt Yang say. "It hurts me too, but I'll be back soon." Blake found herself sincerely hoping for this statement to stay true.

Blake tightened her hold as best she could, attempting to challenge Yang's potential strength, before letting go. She smiled, trying to keep both her expression and outlook positive. "It's fine. Go and make sure she's all right."

Yang smiled back and released her grip as well, giving Blake a look that further promised her return. As the blonde walked towards her sister, she frequently looked back to see how Blake was faring. Eventually, when she reached Ruby, she focused the whole of her attention on her sister. She put her arm over the young girl's shoulder and pulled her into a sideways hug that Blake had enjoyed before. As they walked off into the crowd, Blake could not help but feel the same ache she had felt previously. This time, however, the feeling lingered far after she lost sight of Yang and Ruby.

"Yang truly has gotten to you, hasn't she?" With her gaze trained on where Yang and Ruby had once been, Blake had momentarily forgotten about Weiss' presence. She turned with a raised eyebrow and an unmistakable, unintentional frown. The heiress walked forward, arms crossed as she seemed to appraise the Faunus. "She's corrupted you—turned you into one of them. When I first met you, Blake, you wouldn't have acted this way about Yang taking time to help Ruby. You would have shrugged this off and went about your business as per usual. Now you are verging on being a sniveling mess at being away for only two hours." While the words had a definite bite to them, the expression Weiss held proved to Blake that she was not insulting her. Rather, the furrowed brows and slight look of disappointment in her eyes showed genuine care. "You've lost your edge."

Blake sighed both in exasperation and acceptance. Weiss was correct, somewhat. She had lost her "edge"; though, this edge, she believed, had been her indifference and passivity towards becoming close to anyone. If these were the aspects Weiss had been referring to, then she would have to disagree. Losing these, she thought, made her seem more accessible and personable—something she aspired for yet something she could never allow herself to be. However, if it was her independent and underlying "tough" demeanor being remarked upon, then Blake would have to admittedly agree. In hindsight, the Blake of months prior would have never acted the way she did at Yang's temporary departure. "Perhaps," was all she could say, being at odds with the observation.

The appraising stare continued to hold until Weiss eventually sighed as well. "There's no use in standing around, pondering the pros and cons of sentimentality. Come. I have an errand I need to run. Perhaps it will distract you from your…forlornness." She seemed hesitant about her phrasing of the last sentence, particularly the correct diction for the final word. Still, she expressed care through her words, albeit in her regular, standoffish way and Blake appreciated it.

"Yeah," Blake breathed, "sure." She needed something to occupy her time. As it was, she foresaw the coming hours as subjectively slow and emotionally draining. Errands and intermittent small talk were sufficiently distracting in her mind.

This was all the permission Weiss needed to turn and begin walking off. Blake followed immediately after, quickly catching up to ensure that she was not alone in the crowd. Unlike Yang's brash, undeterred way in which she pushed through a crowd, Weiss had a commanding presence that required groups to move out of her way rather than finding paths around them. While the crowd did part for the two, this imperious attitude caused those standing aside to send glare after glare at the girls. Weiss did not seem fazed by this in the slightest, not paying any mind to anything but her objective. Blake, on the other hand, was having a much harder time ignoring the gazes.

She kept her gaze trained steadily on the heiress' tiara simply because it was the object that most stood out in the area. Doing so allowed her to avoid eye contact with many of the onlookers, but even this could not completely dull their scrutiny. A logical Blake would have found the distance to the nearest exit from this square to be concerning, considering the number of disgruntled groups the two would eventually disrupt. However, what concerned Blake now was the perceived amount of people in this current crowd. Thousands upon thousands of humans looking down on her because Weiss looked down on them; it was a story not dissimilar to recent Faunus history. What had been simply annoyed pedestrians morphed into visions of irritated factory workers kept out of their place of employment so that she could further her own cause. Alongside these workers were activists—counter-protesters—screeching obscenities and stomping on this cobbled square. They all looked ready to charge, to break down the gates, and destroy any possibility of a decent life for her. Whenever they chose to, they would overrun her and her comrades without even the slightest of difficulties. And she would run but she would fall, and in the end, she would be powerless to save those she cared most about. Yet it was the tortured screams of Yang that echoed in her mind and how they quickly dissipated that was able to remind her that all of these pedestrians were harmless and that it was summer rather than a bitter autumn and that life was beautiful now.

Yang was safe, albeit safe somewhere else with her sister, but she was safe nonetheless. Even though she wasn't in view, Blake was able to take solace in her existence. Her safety had been the single flaw to break the troubled descent into fear and panic. The warmth of the sun and the shimmering light on the rain-slicked rocks of the path reminded Blake that she was not alone and that she had friends—rather, a surrogate family—that would seemingly always be there whenever she needed them. However, she knew that the cause of this and her rapid composure was Yang specifically. She smiled warmly as she swiftly moved through the crowd to catch up to Weiss and make up the distance she had created with her introspection. Ironically, it would be Yang who would get her through these next couple hours unscathed and without stress.

* * *

There was no welcoming sound—no greeter, no door chime—when Weiss pushed the shop's door open. It was a dimly lit place, but perhaps this added to the ambiance of the small but very much regal jewelry store. The shop was quiet, small, and drew attention to the girls who walked in heeled boots on the floor's white tiles. Blake could see why the heiress chose to enter; this place fit her personality well. However, it was an uncomfortable setting for the more reserved of the two. Fortunately, there was only one other person in the store who would notice their presences: a distracted cashier who was far too involved with whatever it was she was writing on a pad of paper to notice the patrons enter anyways.

Not even the girls' conversation that bled into their entrance seemed to bother the woman. "Exactly," Weiss agreed. "Whoever thought that placing an Edmund next to a Fletcher must have been either blind or an idiot. I swear, Blake, it was like diamonds on a swine. The curator—the unfortunate soul—was as inept as I've ever seen." As the door slid to a close, Blake was able to look at the various glass cases and counters around her. "It is truly a sad state of affairs when I can be confident that _I_ would do a better job of curating the exhibit than an institute devoted to the study of art."

"I believe you could. Though, you have to think that maybe the curator had his reasons for placing them beside each other. Perhaps there was some sort of thematic or metaphoric similarity between the two." Despite the current annoyance expressed by Weiss, she had apparently enjoyed the exhibit. The amount of information she had given Blake, be it positive or negative, was indicative of definite happiness. Even if her current tangent was critical of the exhibit's staff, she seemed absolutely delighted with the chance to go. Blake found herself engaging in conversation for the admittedly cynical attempt at absorbing as much positivity as she could in lieu of her presently absent source of happiness. A distraction on its own, she found, was not able to keep her from paying attention to the crowd; supplemented conversation and happiness were necessary.

"That's what is sad about all of this. You are probably right and the curator _did_ believe he was making the correct decision." Weiss didn't bother looking over to the bored cashier, instead moving quickly to a specific case. Perhaps she had been here before. "And personal preference aside, I find it hard to believe that he could find any similarity whatsoever between the paintings. I struggle to even refer to Fletcher's as a 'painting.' Edmund's was a moving work of art that was both powerful and elegant while Fletcher's was a simple picture with a one-dimensional message only just below the surface." She sighed, abruptly ending her tangential thoughts. "Whatever. There's no accounting for taste, is there?"

Blake smirked ruefully, gauging whether or not what she was about to say was appropriate to both parties involved. Figuring that this was the case, she said, "That's the story of our lives, isn't it?" She meant no disrespect to the ongoing feud between the White Fang and the Schnee family and she felt that this sentiment was conveyed to the heiress. Rather, she saw this joke as an attempt to burn even more bridges between herself and her past while forging a stronger bond of trust between her and her teammate.

Weiss let out a single "Ha!" that managed to garner a glare from the cashier. Though the look had not been seen by its intended recipient, Blake had taken notice. "Perhaps. I wouldn't dare say that around my father, but I think the proverb applies nicely." Within recent memory, Blake could not remember the last time she had seen Weiss legitimately amused. Most times, her laughs were sarcastic and condescending.

For as long as Blake had known her, Weiss had been more goal-driven and regulation-guided than anyone else she had ever met. Seeing her slowly breaking away from routine and her regular coldness was a welcome sight. Not only did this rare laugh show improvement on Weiss' part, but it reminded Blake of her own change. Her ability to empathize with Weiss' uncharacteristic show of emotion brought her thoughts back to Yang and how the sunny blonde had managed to support her in times of need and "get her out of her shell" as she had said. These were only two items of an ever-expanding list of things the Faunus was grateful for, yet they were what led her down the path towards loving her.

She blinked hard, distancing herself from her thoughts and unwittingly taking a physical step back. Blake had promised herself that she would try to avoid these thoughts as they made her seem far too aloof and distant for her liking while having the possibility of revealing potential flaws in her relationship. She was afraid of this last item purely because she didn't know why she felt as though she was "in love" with Yang. She had joined the White Fang believing that there was nobody else in the world who would understand her. Yet, now she was with Yang who understood everything about her—in actuality, Yang knew her well for what she had been told; most of Blake's past was not only something she wanted to avoid talking about, it was simply unmentionable in her mind. These tangential thoughts were inherently dangerous and something that needed to be avoided.

On the other hand, she had found positive results with a similar train of thought. Though she desperately wanted to avoid admitting its existence, her deep-seated fear of rejection was the only obstacle in the way of her and a less stressful life. She doubted that she would be able to get over this fear any time soon, but she could at least attempt once more to indulge in these supposedly dangerous thoughts that often yielded personal solace and relationship growth. Moreover, these thoughts had proven to be distracting—something that she currently desired to expedite her time away from Yang—and she now had an opportunity to make at least some progress with finding the answer to her question of whether or not it was "love" she was feeling.

Though, Weiss' presence would not be forgotten about. While she did seem to be self-sufficient in her search for whatever it was she came here for, Blake knew that it would be impolite to completely avoid conversation with her. They were friends now, but Blake understood that the heiress valued manners and efficiency over sentimentality and personal turmoil. Yet she, too, was a relatively quiet person; she could speak loudly and forcefully when the occasion required it, but most times, she proved herself to be an introvert. She would understand Blake's need to keep to herself for a moment. Even if she didn't agree with it, the most she would do was scold her.

Blake's thoughts drifted to a warmer, happier place where there was no confusion or disgruntled employee leering in the corner. In doing so, she crossed her arms so that she could revel once more at the feel of the jacket Yang had lent to her. She was selfless, yes, but that had been covered before. What was to be admired was her forethought, whether she had intended on its existence or not. The store was not expressly cold, but Blake doubted the jacket was entirely meant to ward off an inconvenient temperature. She felt that Yang knew there would be times—perhaps when she was alone in a crowd—when she would need a reminder that she was not alone and that she truly was wanted. Now this jacket allowed the Faunus to relax and distract herself from the world around her.

Further evidence of this foresight was evident in the presentation of the blonde's jokes. Blake often caught a look on Yang's face moments before she would say something humorous. It was as though she had something referential in mind ahead of time and highly anticipated the moment she was able to unleash it. It was that memorable glimmer and beginning of a grin that foretold the joke. This expression never failed to set Blake's mood accordingly, be it amused or wary.

And while her apparent deliberation may have seemed trite and concerned only for matters of entertainment when discussed in the context of her humor, it was much more ingrained in her being than simple jokes. Consistently, Yang had proven that her ability to improvise in a stagnant situation was among the best the Faunus had seen. Ruby was similar in this regard, but her abilities excelled when it came to combat. Yang, however, seemed to have backup plans in mind whenever the situation required it. For example, Blake had no reason to believe the tour they went on had been planned in any way besides their eventual destination of the art museum. She knew almost certainly that Yang had been spontaneous in her choice of landmarks to visit. While this may counter the argument that she was prepared, Blake knew that on their way to each landmark, Yang was brushing up on her histories and planning possibilities for where they would head next all while holding a conversation. Furthermore, Blake assumed that during these thoughts, there was the internal dilemma on Yang's part about whether or not the kiss at the obelisk would happen—something that was undoubtedly stressing on her partner. This may seem as though the blonde was adept at multitasking, but Blake would argue that many times Yang would think things through sequentially and expeditiously, leading her to believe that the blonde showed forethought.

"Blake," Weiss called, rousing the Faunus from her thoughts. "Would you mind taking a look at this? I would like to know what you think about it." For a moment, it seemed as though the store's only employee looked enthused; however, she slouched back down into whatever it was she had been doing when she saw that Weiss expressed no interest in her opinion. Blake walked over to the heiress and stood beside her, staring down into the glass counter and at the object in question.

Blake could only assume that what Weiss had been looking at was the large, golden necklace in the center of the case. She took a second to appraise it, finding that the size and intricacy of it made the piece all the more beautiful. The pendant on it was in the shape of either a sun or a sunflower—perhaps it was intended to seem like both—and thusly reminded her of Yang and her golden appearance. However, it was Weiss who was asking about it—a girl who was very much opposite Yang. "I think it looks nice. It's simple in composition, but intricate in design. I think the pendant may be a bit large, but perhaps it that was the intent." Blake then looked towards the Weiss, causing the heiress to look back at her. "But if you want my honest opinion, I don't think it suits you. With your regular attire and disposition, I don't think such a positive piece would be fitting."

Weiss looked back at the necklace, her expression unchanged. "I know that it's something I normally wouldn't wear," she all but growled. Honestly, Blake expected a harsher reaction at her objective statement and light personal insult. But she wouldn't complain; complaining would definitely yield harsher results. "It's not for me anyways." Blake raised an eyebrow. "But you're right. The pendant is too large." At this, Weiss stepped away from the counter and moved down the row of cabinets and adjoining counters.

Following soon after, Blake thought that she was still needed for her insight and scanned the shelves along with Weiss. "Blake?" Weiss asked, again catching her attention. "Would you mind if I asked you a few questions? Not about you, but about your moronic partner."

Blake sighed as a means of avoiding hostilities. "I'd rather you didn't refer to her in that way, but sure. You may ask your questions."

"Fine," Weiss relented, "I will avoid name-calling for now." She straightened her posture—a sign of discomfort at something to come—but concealed the action by gazing intently at an item in one of the cabinets in front of her. "Has she spoken to you about her childhood? I've come to the conclusion that many of the problems that cause Ruby's occasional bursts of skittishness spawn from an event or series of events that happened during her childhood. Unfortunately, whenever I ask about it, she always finds a way to divert the conversation and change the topic."

Blake knew that Yang had been rendered uncharacteristically sad by speaking about her life before combat school, but it had never amounted to anything more than a few moments where she nearly cried. She frequently changed the topic of conversation whenever it was beneficial to the other party and only sometimes did she do it to help herself. If Ruby's personality was at all similar to her sister's, then her reaction would be sadness rather than nervousness. Whenever Yang was nervous, it was usually caused by Blake's affections. Perhaps Ruby's reaction was more noticeable because she was less experienced in relationships than her sister. However, this was not the question Weiss had asked. To appease her, Blake eventually replied, "Yes, but she hasn't said much more than where she and Ruby went when they were younger. Though, she has referenced their mother on occasion. Actually, in almost every story Yang's told me, their mother is present or at least referenced in some way."

Weiss hummed ambiguously. "She has told me similar things. Perhaps it isn't what lies in her past that keeps me from learning about her." For a moment, Blake could see Weiss' eyes widen before she recomposed herself. Soon after, she could see the heiress looking at her out of the corner of her eye. It took a few seconds for her to continue and when she did, her hesitation in phrasing was unmistakable. "I…How did you learn more about Yang?" She looked as though she wanted to say something else, but never did.

Furrowing her brows in contemplation, Blake could barely remember what specifically allowed her to become educated about her partner. At this point, it felt as though she had known Yang all her life and the information seemed to come automatically. "I don't really know. I remember that she wanted to involve me in activities she enjoyed and, for some reason, I accepted. From there, the knowledge came naturally."

"If the same holds true with her sister, then it's not surprising that she isn't more open with me. Perhaps…" Weiss grimaced. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but perhaps I should let her be the one to choose what we do. Possibly then I could learn more about her." Her gaze looked distant, as though she was anticipating the moment she described. Suddenly, her gaze whipped over to Blake, having turned into a glare in the time it had taken to look at her. "Just to be perfectly clear, I only want to learn more about her so we can work better as a cohesive unit."

This defensiveness piqued Blake's interest and caused her to ask, "You never wanted to talk about Yang in the first place, did you?"

The glare remained steadfast for a while, but it eventually softened into a look of questioning anger and subsequently resignation. Weiss sighed before looking around, specifically at the cashier. She must have figured her a threat to some degree, causing her to speak in a low, nearly inaudible voice. "No, that wasn't what I intended. Really, I just wanted to ask you about…" She hesitated and sighed again to boost her confidence. "Blake," this was as sincere and unguarded as her voice had ever been when around the Faunus, "what do you think of Ruby?"

Blake was surprised by the question not because of the suddenness of it—she had actually expected a question like this—but because of the potential implications her answer could hold. Wanting to have a complete understanding of the question before answering, Blake echoed, "What do I think of Ruby?"

"Yes," groaned Weiss exasperatedly. "I don't mean 'what do you think of her as a leader?' What do you think of her as a person? Is she really as kind as she seems? Does she legitimately wish to be a huntress for the thrill of it all? Is she…an adequate human being?"

Her elaboration proved her suspicions. Within the sanctuary that was her own mind, Blake knew that she could infer without fear of reprimand that Weiss was asking her this because she was infatuated with the younger girl. Blake had seen the signs before but now she had a statement from Weiss that alluded to her sentiments. Such an event, when coming from the cold girl, was something extraordinary. Weiss was letting her guard down, showing how embarrassed she was at this admission but remaining confident in her search for answers. Simultaneously, she was communicating to Blake that she saw her as a friend and a trusted confidante. Blake had been in a similar place with her own search for understanding when it came to Yang, so she could empathize with her teammate's situation and would happily oblige her with assistance.

Blake hummed in thought, preparing her response in a way that Weiss would want to hear. "She's…exactly as she appears to be." This was followed by a questioning look on Weiss' part that begged for Blake's prepared elaboration. "Weiss, I doubt Ruby has the capacity to lie to you about anything. Ever since she arrived at Beacon, she's been trying to get your attention and approval. She's been trying to be your friend despite the number of times you've shot her down. And even in the face of your rejection," the heiress' eyes cast downward, "she's maintained a cheerful demeanor. She's even disregarded Yang's advice to avoid you because she wanted to befriend you. I think she was sincere in her excitement to go to the exhibit.

"But I have a feeling you know that already. You want my opinion on her, not objective facts." Weiss looked up to meet her gaze, trepidation clear in her expression. "She's a very good person with a very pure soul. At times, she may be overly enthusiastic or unintentionally awkward, but she means the best. Honestly, she got on my nerves when we first met, but once we got to know each other, I found that she is a very straightforward person who could be a very dear friend. She might have difficulties with first impressions, but once you can get past that, she's a good person. She's trying to appeal to you in the only way she knows how, Weiss. She may not lend herself to the most elegant of interactions, but I think that's part of her charm—part of the reason why you're asking me about her."

To her credit, Weiss was concealing the light blush that spread across her cheeks quite well with her look of determined contemplation. "You say that she is sincere and that she wouldn't lie, but how can you be sure of that? What if she is acting this way so that she can use me—so that she can use the Schnee name—later on?"

"I can't guarantee that any of what I said is true, but from what I've seen, she does not seem like the person who would harm a friend. I doubt that she is using you, Weiss. Frankly, I don't believe she cares what family you come from. Besides, I think it's a bit late to worry about deception now. You put your life in her hands when you looked her in the eye." Weiss' eyes widened in shock momentarily, prompting Blake to pacify the situation. "But she trusted you with her life as well. If there is one person in the world you can trust whole-heartedly, Weiss, it's Ruby."

Weiss was silent. Out of the corner of her eye, Blake saw that the cashier had her head raised from her notepad and had been looking at them while they were conversing. She sent a warning glare her way, causing her to scramble back to being distracted. Blake then turned her gaze back to Weiss, watching her as she absorbed the information. She would give the girl a few moments to collect her thoughts before continuing again.

She sighed to begin the next part of her opinion as not to startle the heiress. "Weiss, I know you weren't asking me what I think about Ruby as a person or as a leader just as you weren't asking me about Yang earlier. If you are asking me what I assume you are, then I cannot answer. Whatever you do now is your choice and while Ruby may be having similar thoughts, it is going to be your mutual decision that decides what comes next for your partnership."

The blush on Weiss' cheeks intensified to a level where it was no longer concealable by any thoughtful expression. Perhaps it was the time she had spent around Yang, but in seeing this sight, Blake felt the need to make one extra comment. "But I think I should remind you that regardless of what you choose to do, Ruby will still legally be a minor. On top of that, I doubt Yang will appreciate it if you wrong her little sister in any way, emotional or otherwise. You are a skilled with a sword, but I doubt that will help if you have to contend with an enraged Yang." Her face underwent a series of rapid color shifts, coloring at one point and then blanching immediately after. "Just keep in mind that Yang still has her reservations about you."

Weiss stared intently at nothing in particular in front of her. She then bowed her head and closed her eyes. She sighed, "Then that will be a sacrifice I must be willing to make." Blake smiled; she hoped that things turned out well for the heiress now that she had set herself on a path that she had once walked herself. In this moment, Blake chose to describe the eyes that looked back at hers as a light blue rather than icy; it was a fitting description for the sincerity shown by them. "Thank you, Blake. You have helped me immensely whether you know it or not." She then smiled back. "But I have to ask that you keep this information between us only. Can I trust that you will keep this conversation a secret?"

Blake nodded. "Absolutely."

"Very well. Now, if you will allow me, I need to keep searching." Blake felt like asking what she was searching for, having not known why she was in this building since she first entered. However, they had just had an extensive conversation about matters that she deemed to be complex. She would allow Weiss to search and think about what had been said.

Meanwhile, Blake chose to look around as well. She figured that she needed to recover from the conversation as well and making progress towards answering her question would prove counterintuitive to relaxation. Normally, she loathed the concept of shopping, but many of her reasons for her distaste were absent. There were only three people in the store and she did not feel pressured to purchase anything—at least she didn't yet. As she moved to the cases at the far side of the shop, she heard the nearing sound of heels clicking against tiled floor that decidedly did not come from Weiss.

"Hi!" The woman's drawled greeting came across as desperate and insincere. Before she could appropriately react, Blake found the woman who had been behind the counter in the corner presently standing next to her with obvious fake enthusiasm. "Is there anything I can help you with?" Blake internally groaned. She had wanted to relax, not to converse with a person holding a blatant ulterior motive.

Still, despite being annoyed at the apparent saleswoman, Blake could retain some composure and respond politely. "No, thank you. I'm just looking around." She hoped that this response would eliminate any possibilities for future conversation.

Unfortunately, this could not be. "Well, maybe I could point you in the right direction. Is there anything in specific you're looking to buy?" As soon as Blake heard the woman's attempt to force conversation, a single word resonated in her mind: commission. Judging by the décor of this establishment, Blake was certain that she would be paid on salary; however, this idea of bonus on commission meant trouble for the Faunus. It meant that the longer she went without expressly stating her wish to be alone, the more the woman would attempt to sell her something. "Maybe you're looking to buy something for a special occasion?"

It took a great deal of effort to suppress the urge to roll her eyes. "No, I'm sorry. I'm not looking to buy anything. I'm simply browsing while I wait for my friend to find what she needs." In her opinion, this was a more measured, meticulous response than her last. She felt that this would achieve what she wanted.

The flaw in her reply, however, proved to be her mention of Weiss. The woman lost interest in Blake immediately, revealing a bored, tired frown before turning towards Weiss with an attempt at a beaming smile. The heiress had been looking at a case before her, leaving her back facing the sales worker. Though, she didn't require a direct line of sight to hear the approaching figure. The woman was barely able to greet with the same "Hi!" before Weiss curtly stated, "No." Blake couldn't help but snicker as the woman hung her head low and returned to the register.

She felt oddly lucky that Yang wasn't here. It was strange for her to think this, but she felt that if the blonde been here in this instance, she would have engaged in conversation regardless of whether or not she wished to buy anything. Perhaps her loquaciousness would serve only to tease or would simply be natural and characteristic of her. Blake knew that Yang would have picked up on the woman's fake enthusiasm and perhaps the conversation between the two would progress to a point where Yang would joke about the woman for not being sincere, causing their eventual expulsion from the store. Then again, she was perceptive enough to notice Blake's discomfort a number of times before, so it could be reasoned that Yang might have responded similarly to how Weiss reacted. Though, she figured that perhaps her partner's response might have been less concise and more aggressive than the heiress'.

Yang was a protective person by nature. Blake had seen how she acted around Ruby during their time at Beacon and more recently, she had found herself falling under her partner's care. At times, this care felt stifling; specifically in instances where Yang offered to wholly and immediately solve one of Blake's problems for her—an example would be when she had paid for their lunch earlier today. While Blake may have disagreed with some of her actions, she knew that her partner did these things to ensure that there were minimal opportunities for unnecessary worry. Currently, Yang was protecting her sister as best she could. This was yet another aspect that added to the case of her selflessness.

Blake didn't pay much attention to the jewelry before her, finding most pieces to be bland or similar to all the others. They were all fascinating, but there were only a few pieces that differentiated themselves from the others. However, there was one which immediately caught Blake's attention and brought her back to present reality. Amongst many other necklaces in the glass counter before her was something that resonated with Blake. In the back, right corner of the case laid a golden necklace. It was not as large or ornate as the one Weiss had shown her earlier, but this was why it drew Blake's attention. This, more than the other, reminded her of Yang and caused her to envision the blonde wearing this piece.

She could not comprehend why her thoughts had so quickly gravitated towards Yang and this accessory. Her partner tended to focus on physical beauty—strength, grace, health—rather than material appearance that jewelry lent itself to. Yet there was something about this necklace that made Blake believe her girlfriend would appreciate it. The necklace itself was simple and would not draw attention away from the wearer, yet it was just elegant enough to make the assumed wearer potentially glow. The subtle sheen of the gold paralleled Yang's perennially sunny nature and was reminiscent of her radiant hair. This is the reason why Blake thought that a gold necklace would suit Yang best.

But there were many other modest necklaces in the store. What had drawn Blake's attention specifically was the amber gemstone that comprised this necklace's pendant. Perhaps it was a bit narcissistic of her to think, but Blake was reminded of her own eyes when she saw the piece. How symbolically perfect, she thought, it was to find this treasure that represented both the priceless warmth of Yang and the reserved tranquility of herself. Yang deserved it for all she had done and buying it for her was the least Blake could do to thank her for this summer, her care, and their relationship. She even thought that, perhaps, it would prove to the blonde that she would never forget the time she spent with her. Perhaps, she thought, it would convey her love.

She did not notice Weiss' presence until the girl hummed in appraisal. Blake, ever so slightly startled, looked over to her and saw her raised eyebrow. "You're thinking of giving this to Yang?" the heiress asked. Blake simply stared back at the necklace and nodded. "I think it's fitting. I believe she will like it; you know her better than I do."

Before Blake could respond, Weiss turned and walked away. She wasn't upset by this, having been too engrossed in the thoughts of how the necklace would look on Yang and how she would react to receiving it. With these thoughts sufficiently distracting her, she did not hear the short conversation that occurred between Weiss and the shop's only employee. She only became aware of this once the woman walked up to the case and unlocked it.

Alarmed, Blake sent a critical look to Weiss. She was across the store and standing before the register. Immediately, Blake knew that Weiss intended to buy the necklace for her. Yang buying her lunch was one thing, but what Weiss was doing was unnecessary. "Weiss, I can take care of this myself. Please don't do this."

Weiss shook her head. "My family has a rule, Blake, and has upheld this rule for generations upon generations. Whenever a person assists a Schnee in a great way, we are obliged to grant assistance to the person whenever he or she may need it." Blake's look became a defiant glare but was met with a rare smile from Weiss. "I'm not trying to belittle you. You've done a great thing for me today and I wish to return the favor." The woman gingerly lifted the necklace off of its stand, closed the case, and relocked it. Blake felt the urge to halt her physically, but was dissuaded by Weiss' continued speech. "Please, Blake; this is something I must do."

"But what about what you were looking for?" Blake was searching for any means of discouraging this purchase. "Shouldn't you be focusing on that instead?"

Again, Weiss shook her head. "No, I've come to realize that if _I _was to buy something here, it would undoubtedly come across as improper. Coming from _you_, however, a gift from here would be appropriate." The woman returned to the counter and laid the necklace down.

Between her ineffectual resistance and the confusion caused by the heiress' last statement, Blake could not think of anything to say to either Weiss or the employee that could cease their transaction. Instead, she steadily walked to the counter to stand beside Weiss. If what she said about familial honor in repaying a debt was true, then Blake understood that her denial would come across as shameful and rude. Moreover, she knew that Weiss' stubbornness was rivaled not even by Yang's. Figuring there was nothing she could do to stop the transaction, she sighed. "You know that I can take care of myself, correct?"

"I'm aware, but you have given me information and confidence far more valuable than any necklace could ever amount to." Weiss reached into the pouch where she usually kept secondary vials of Dust for Myrtenaster and pulled out a familiar white card. Blake barely had time to wonder where she had seen such a sight before Weiss continued. "I've wronged you too many times now and I want to apologize and thank you for being a friend." The woman swiped the card, Weiss gave her signature, and the transaction was completed.

As the woman took the necklace behind a door, Blake turned to Weiss, unsure of how her expression should look. She was all of annoyed, exasperated, and grateful. "I appreciate the gesture, but you really shouldn't have done that for me."

The kind look Weiss had held for these past few minutes vanished quickly and was replaced with an annoyed look of her own. "Blake, stop. What's done is done. I understand that you want to uphold your integrity. And while that's all well and good, you can't argue every time somebody does something nice for you. Sometimes, you need to allow others to help you. Perhaps later you could return the favor, but allow me to do this one thing for you."

Blake's defiant look held for only a few more seconds before she frowned and sighed. "I apologize. It was rude of me to argue." She then met Weiss' eyes with a challenging look. "Thank you for doing this, but don't think that I will forget your suggestion about returning the favor at a later date."

Weiss smirked. "I would be concerned if you did." This allowed Blake to smile somewhat; they had finally come to an understanding.

The woman returned with a thin, black box in hand. Instead of heading to the register where she stood previously, she went around the counter and stood before Blake to present the box. Now that something had been purchased, she seemed to be willing to show sincere emotion. "Here you go, ma'am. You chose a very pretty necklace and I'm sure your grandmother will appreciate it. By the way, I'm so sorry to hear about her. You have my sympathies." Blake was genuinely confused. This had apparently been conveyed through her expression because the woman elaborated, "I know how hard it is to have someone suffering from dementia. My mother developed it before she passed. I hope she enjoys the gift; it is a really sweet thing you're doing for her."

Blake gave an unsure smile and thanked her despite not knowing what she was talking about. She then heard the shop's door slide open and knew that her teammate had left. Left alone with the result of Weiss' cruel sense of humor, Blake made her leave eventually and with innumerable instances of false gratitude. As soon as she backed out into the humid air of the city, she turned to find Weiss standing nearby with her arms crossed. Before she could say anything, Weiss stated, "I'm happy to offer my assistance, but because Yang is the intended recipient, I had to make fun of her somehow."

"But don't you think the story you told her was inappropriate? She said her mother had dementia."

Weiss scoffed. "You actually believed that? She only kept talking to you so she could sell you another necklace." Judging by the woman's earlier behavior, Blake was inclined to believe this claim over the employee's. "But I apologize if I managed to hurt your feelings in the process. Crass behavior begets equal ridicule, whether or not Yang was here to witness it." Blake thought that this was a harsh reaction, but couldn't bring herself to complain because the heiress had purchased a necklace for her.

As she contemplated the ethics of Weiss' reaction, she found that the girl in white had already begun to move. "If Ruby and Yang aren't done with their walk by now, they will be soon." This was all the incentive Blake needed to catch up to her. As she did so, she slid the box into one of the jacket's pockets and did not let go. It wasn't her dislike of crowds that brought about this cautiousness, but rather it was the value she placed on this necklace and the joy that it might bring her girlfriend. She could see Yang's expression now: the radiant smile, the warm hug, and eyes that reciprocated the same emotions Blake felt. She would guard this box and remain attentive of those around her who might covet the gift for themselves.

As she did so, she wondered when it would be appropriate to give Yang the necklace. Perhaps not today. Enough had gone on that if she gave Yang the jewelry today, it might not receive the same reaction it could garner if given at a more opportune time. She decided that once the moment came, she would know. Whenever that moment presented itself, she would be prepared.

* * *

The descent into frightened discomfort from such a happy state only began once Blake found that Yang and Ruby had not yet returned from their walk. This left her and Weiss standing amongst a growing mass of humanity. During the first few minutes, Blake had been calm about the situation, believing that the two would return at any second. However, as the minutes passed, she found herself without any reassuring information that could keep her composed. Weiss couldn't help; she naturally was not a caring person and missed the fairly obvious signs of fear Blake had shown. Now she watched every person in the crowd, waiting for a head to turn towards her and stare her way. She never took her hand off of the box resting in her pocket, too afraid of potential pickpockets that she knew existed and knew went unnoticed because of her current state. She could only hope that Yang would return soon.

She was not yet at the point where visions or paralysis occurred as nobody in the crowd seemed to care about her and Weiss' presences. Yet she was aware of the fact that if one person looked even slightly agitated by her presence, a cascading effect of guilt, remorse, and fear would take control over her actions completely. As a last resort, she began rubbing the inside of her coat pockets so that she could encase herself in a shield of Yang's lingering affection.

Yang could take her away from this desolation. Ever since they started dating, she had never once failed in her consoling efforts. Not a single person in her past had been able to do what Yang has done for her in these five days. To Blake, her partner was a source of security unparalleled in her effectiveness and statistical stability. While she wanted to believe she needed Yang in this instance, her own stubborn pride would not let her think that she needed anybody—this was the same stubborn pride that argued that she did not love Yang.

While it is true that Blake was not dependent on Yang, it would be wrong to assume that she could go without her partner for long any more. The blonde was the first true friend the Faunus has ever had, thus placing a value on her that would never be matched by her teammates or any other friend she may make in the future. Furthermore, she was Blake's first significant other. In most cases, this would doom the relationship from the start; however, Blake had been careful with who she fell for. She knew that Yang was right for her. The fact that Yang felt the same way was astounding and allowed for the single-greatest moment in her life. Now this person who was so precious to Blake was away when she needed her. She would admit that she missed Yang and needed her dearly at this time.

From underneath her bow, Blake's Faunus ears perked at a sound otherwise muffled by the crowd's myriad conversations. "Blake!" she heard Yang call. She knew not if it was the high pitch of her girlfriend's call or if she had simply heard her partner's voice enough times to differentiate it from thousands of others, but Blake instantly knew to whom the voice belonged.

She felt like yelling back in response, but stopped herself preemptively. Such an action would draw the attention of those around her. Instead of easily giving Yang her and Weiss' position, Blake resigned to waiting for the next time she called her name.

"Blake!" Since she was prepared this time, she was able to interpret the direction from which the noise came. It was only after she heard a higher-pitched voice yell, "Weiss!" that Blake could be certain in her assumptions of where the other two were.

Keeping her thoughts on Yang alone, Blake began walking into the crowd. "Blake!" This time, the call did not come from Yang. "Where are you going?"

Blake turned back to Weiss and simply said, "Yang's over here. Come on." Weiss huffed but followed nonetheless.

The further into the crowd the two traveled, the harder it was for Blake to keep her thoughts trained on the prospect of seeing Yang once again. She was voluntarily moving in between people that were probably unenthused by her interruption of their various conversations, but with her forced distraction, she was unable to feel their scathing gazes as she passed them by. Again, she heard the shouts of "Blake!" and "Weiss!" This time, however, she found that the noises came from a different direction than the way she was heading. With this realization in mind, she changed course and moved towards the assumed location of her girlfriend at an even greater speed.

Once more the two called. Now it was Weiss' turn to notice them. "I think I heard them," she said. "It sounded as though their voices came from our left." Once again, Blake altered her direction. In a way, she found it ironic that she was now the one finding a path through the crowd and leading another person to their destination. However, she could not ruminate on this for too long; her current level of goal-driven indifference required absolute concentration. Suddenly, she broke through a wall of people and saw her.

Yang hadn't seen her yet. She was saying something to Ruby that was only just inaudible while she scanned the crowd in front of her. It was a strangely similar scene to the one Blake had woken up to. Now that she could see her partner, Blake allowed herself to relax, becoming aware of the glances she was being given from those around her, but not truly caring. Seeing Yang again was a dream come true despite having only been separated for what could not have been more than an hour and a half.

Her only reason for staying hidden in the crowd was so that she could prepare what she wanted to say to Yang in a witty and concise manner. However, attention was drawn her way when Weiss brushed past her and stepped into the sisters' vision. "Hey, Weiss! We're back!" Ruby exclaimed in her regular, chipper tone. "Did you miss us?"

As Weiss fumbled for a response that would not betray her flustered demeanor, Blake accepted the fact that they would eventually see her as well and stepped into view. Immediately, her eyes were drawn to Yang's lilac and their stares became locked onto one another's. Automatically, Blake began to move forward, undeterred by her previous thoughts of stealth and preparedness. When she saw Yang's beaming smile directed towards her, her pace quickened and soon enough she found her way into her girlfriend's warm embrace.

The two didn't say anything for a while, simply enjoying the presence of one another. Blake gripped tightly onto the heavier leather jacket that Yang wore, not wanting to be separated from her ever again. She turned her head this way and that so she could get the jacket's collar out of her face. In doing so, she moved herself closer so that her cheek brushed up against Yang's neck and her face became buried in the blonde's collarbone. As she closed her eyes and became surrounded by warmth, Blake felt as though it was yet another sunny day in Vale and the idea that it had rained earlier became absolutely ridiculous. She sighed contentedly, breathing in the smell of lavender once again. "I missed you," she whispered softly into Yang.

One of Yang's hands cupped the back of her head while warm fingers danced wonderfully through her hair. Blake thought that she couldn't be any happier in this moment, but her partner's action made her outright blissful, evoking emotions not dissimilar to those she felt when she held Yang's pillow close earlier this morning. As she nuzzled closer into her girlfriend, she could feel a head dip down close to hers and whisper back, "I missed you too." Blake smiled and hummed contentedly—rather, the result of her joyful efforts came out as more of a purr than a hum, but she could not be bothered by this; Yang was back now and that was all that mattered.

They would remain like this for a few minutes, locked in each other's embrace and all the happier for it despite the rising level of discomfort on the other teammates' parts. In fact, neither Blake nor Yang noticed that the other two had ceased their own conversation to awkwardly await the end of their reunited joy until Weiss faked a cough. When Blake pulled away, she had a blush spreading across her cheeks; this was not caused by the thought of others seeing her display of affection—in this moment, others' opinions on her relationship meant next to nothing to her—but instead by the amount of time she unintentionally left the Ruby and Weiss waiting. When she looked to her partner, Blake found that Yang was blushing too as she slung an arm over her shoulder. They looked expectantly at the heiress.

The girl in question sent a glare that seemed to silently warn Blake that it would be unwise to make her regret her purchase. The glare then turned towards Yang; though in this case, the glare seemed to represent established low levels of spite and loathing. "I trust your little heart-to-heart with Ruby went well."

"Nah," Yang drawled, grinning unabashedly. "I actually made it worse. Sorry about that. I tried everything I could, but she still turned out a miserable mess. That's why she's smiling and actually talking to you again. It really is a sad sight to see." This was returned with an unamused look from Weiss while Blake and Ruby laughed.

"Funny." Weiss scowled. "Perhaps it is unwise to joke about Ruby's obvious distressed state."

"Yeah, sure. Maybe for someone else, but I'm her sister; I get a pass." Yang beamed at the shorter girl. "She's fine, Weiss. She just had something on her mind and needed to talk to someone about it."

Weiss seemed alarmed and looked over to Ruby. "Why didn't you talk to me about it?" Rather than her regular, provoked manner of response, the way Weiss reacted almost seemed desperate. Ruby's response was decidedly less sentimental. Her eyes widened in fear and her mouth opened and closed in a futile attempt to say something, anything to appease the heiress.

She never got the opportunity to respond for Yang had begun laughing at Weiss' question. "Are you kidding me?" she asked between breaths. "You aren't the most approachable person in the world. Every time Ruby wanted to talk to you about something, you'd tell her to stop talking and get back to work. Besides," she controlled her breathing, "she needed to talk to _me_ about it."

The way Yang had phrased her last statement seemed to convey to Weiss the finality she had intended, causing the heiress to truncate her insistence with a sigh. She then looked at Ruby. The young girl smiled with warmth reminiscent of her sister's own. "Sorry about earlier. I didn't mean to get in the way of you and the exhibit. I really enjoyed it, though. Thanks for taking me with you, Weiss." To Blake, the young leader's response was perhaps the sweetest, most heartwarming thing she had ever heard her say. This was only added to by Ruby's pleading gaze towards her partner that begged not only for forgiveness, but for Weiss to be happy again.

Apparently, the girl in white had similar thoughts about Ruby's response. She blinked and blinked until she could formulate her next course of action, being obviously flustered by this show of adoration. When she did reply, it came out metered and monotonous. "I'm glad that you enjoyed it, Ruby. Is there anything else you wanted to do while we are here?"

Ruby squinted in apparent thought. "No, I don't think so. I know I'm probably forgetting something, but what are you gonna do? That sort of thing happens. But seriously, I had a lot of fun." She relaxed her expression, leaving her only with a smile that was able to make Weiss blush from its sincerity. "But it also took a lot out of me. Do you think we could head home early?"

Weiss nodded, slowly working her way to a smile. "Sure. That sounds nice."

Before the heiress could react, Ruby took her by the hand and began pulling her away, waving all the while back at Blake and Yang. "I'll see you back at the house! Don't stay out too late!" Blake was pleased to see that Weiss showed little resistance against the hold Ruby had her in. Other than an initial movement to shift her hand into a more comfortable position, she seemed calm—Blake assumed she had quickly become confident in her intent.

Yang waved back. "We'll be back soon!" was all she could yell before the other partnership disappeared into the crowd. As soon as she lost sight of them, she turned her bright gaze on Blake. "So? What about you? Wanna head home early too?"

Today's trip had been different from Blake's last trip into the city. She did not mean this in either a positive or negative way; rather, she accepted that there were certain aspects about their first trip that she would have been unable to replicate regardless of how hard she tried. Even still, there were certain aspects about their current trip that were more memorable than their last. Both trips had their positives and negatives, but she decided that this was not at all regrettable. And though it was still mid-afternoon in the city of Vale, she felt that if they were to do anything else today it would be aimless wandering—something that would be undoubtedly trying on both of their tired states. She shrugged. "Sure."

The arm around her shoulders tightened as Yang turned both of them around. "Sounds good." The couple then moved forward into the crowd and towards the corridor they initially came through to reach this square. In their travels, Blake returned to the wonderful warmth that was the inside of Yang's shoulder. Again, she didn't care what anybody thought of how they looked—not anymore. She had waited far too long to be able to trust a person like how she trusted Yang and she had to wait even more to return to this embrace. Those around her could glare all they liked, they could judge all they wanted, but her resolve would hold and she could no longer see validity in bold claims of those uninvolved.

She sighed contentedly, glad that she was back with Yang. "How did things go with Ruby? She acted as though nothing had happened." Partially, the question was meant to sate her curiosity, but even more than that, she asked it so that she could hear Yang's voice again. She had missed her wholly and dearly.

"Eh," Yang shrugged, "She vented for half an hour and then spent an hour yelling at me for 'interrupting' them. But at least she's fine now. She just needed a bit of a reset, that's all." As they found the familiar corridor, Yang turned to smile at Blake. "How'd Weiss go?"

There were two limiting factors in Blake's potential answer. For one, Weiss had asked her to keep their conversation confidential and Blake was ready to honor this agreement. The second factor was the thin box resting in her jacket that was intended to be a surprise. Between the two of these, her explanation was left to, "She seemed annoyed by the situation at first, but she got over it fairly quickly. She took me shopping."

Yang grimaced. "How was that?"

"Not as bad as I thought it would be," she hummed. "The staff actually proved to be worse. The woman who worked there and tried to help us was incredibly disingenuous. She was a terrible actress; it was awful."

"You know, I feel bad for you, but not enough to say I'd switch places with you." Blake shook her head and rolled her eyes. "But I mean, she couldn't be _that_ bad." Yang's gaze remained on her for a moment, eventually losing the playful expression she held. "Could she?"

"Yang, she attempted to sell me something through guilt. She even lied about her mother having dementia to make me feel worse."

"And did it work?" Blake gave her a flat look. Yang beamed. "That's my Blake. Always the fighter." Blake sighed and closed her eyes as she moved closer into Yang's hold. She smiled absent-mindedly as she repeated Yang's phrasing again and again in her mind. "My Blake," she had said. How naturally she had said it—it could almost be assumed to be second nature. The Faunus dismissed the potential connotations of ownership, seeing the phrase instead as Yang's unadulterated affections and enjoyment of her presence. She doubted Yang cared about such semantics, but the satisfaction she derived from her analysis of the sentence was incredible.

When she next opened her eyes, she could see Bumblebee standing out amongst a line of cars coated in varying greyscale paints. Apparently, the museum had, in fact, been the intended destination, seeing as how the bike was not far from it. They didn't speak to one another as they made their way to the vehicle, being too captivated by their embrace. To disengage from the hold was difficult, but necessary for mounting the bike. Before that could happen, however, Yang would hand Blake a helmet before putting on her own. Blake was torn between continuing to watch the blonde and making sure the necklace was secured. In the end, Blake buttoned the pocket that carried the box before donning her helmet as well.

She took her position behind Yang and held on tight, not for her own safety, but to ensure that she could remain close. Some part of her worried about the box being felt through both of their jackets, but then again, the jacket Yang wore was far thicker than her own. Regardless, she rested her head against the mane of golden hair in front of her and nodded when asked if she was ready to leave. For as long as they were on that bike, Blake found that the world around her diminished in importance. She knew now what meant the most to her. The equality of her people, while still important to her, paled in comparison to this personal victory she had achieved. Her aspirations for becoming a huntress and making the world a marginally better place were temporarily forgotten in the face of accomplishment. Blake knew now that she could say without use of hyperbole that Yang was the figure she held dearest and her acceptance had been the absolute greatest moment in her life. She held this figure close, unwilling to let the world separate her from her partner.

* * *

The sounds of moving metal persisted as Bumblebee entered the home's garage and shook Blake from her reverie. The headlights dimmed and the engine was turned off, causing the gyroscope to activate and balance the vehicle. Yang pressed a button on the bike's control panel and the garage door slowly came back down. Their trip had essentially ended and yet neither moved. Even through her helmet, Blake could hear the subtle sounds of Yang's heartbeat as though her ear was once more against the blonde's chest. Yang held a reflective smile in kind, though due to their positions, Blake could not see it. Neither had the immediate desire to move, but they both knew that it was an eventual necessity.

Blake was the first to dismount the bike and separate from her partner. What allowed her to follow through with this action was the knowledge that they were home now and that in this place, there would be nothing impeding them from being near each other. Even as she took her helmet off, she watched her girlfriend with that same prideful, nervous feeling from earlier. Without Blake's admittedly restricting hold, Yang was able to dismount as well. As soon as her helmet was removed, she smirked at Blake. "I'd say today was pretty good, wouldn't you?"

"Yeah, all things considered." Truthfully, the day had been wonderful. Blake simply felt like teasing her girlfriend.

"And I'm guessing the 'thing' you're considering is your bonding experience with Weiss?" Yang approached Blake and took her helmet before placing them on the counter at the back wall of the room.

"Well, yes, there's that." Blake pursed her lips and pretended to look intently at nothing in particular, hoping that her expression would come across as contemplative. "There's also the fact that you were late to the rally point and that you abandoned me this morning, leaving me with a pillow replacement."

"Hey! _We_ weren't late; actually, we were early. You and Weiss came like forty-five minutes ahead of time. If anything, _you_ should have kept on shopping." Blake laughed. "And I already apologized for the pillow thing! I told you that I had some stuff to take care of. Now that it's taken care of, that won't happen again—at least, I hope." This caught Blake's attention. Was Yang implying that the sleeping arrangements they had last night would become frequent? If so, she had no complaints.

"Fine," Blake dismissed, intending for her reaction to come across as flippant. "Anyways, I had a great time. So, yes, I do believe today went well."

Yang smiled warmly at this clear answer. "And what about the tour? I know the rain kinda messed it up, but I think we had fun."

"It was fun, Yang. I enjoyed it immensely, but perhaps next time we could go somewhere that doesn't involve causing trouble for your sister."

"Yeah, yeah. Okay, fine." Yang rolled her eyes. "Again, my bad. I just couldn't resist. When Ruby says 'Don't mess with Weiss today,' you pretty much have to mess with Weiss. Just think of what could've happened if I didn't play the hero?" She shook her head, faking solemnity. "What a travest-Schnee it could have been."

This pun was nowhere near the funniest the blonde had told her before, yet Blake still could not stop herself from laughing. "You're terrible," she managed to gasp.

Yang shrugged the quip off. "I'm all right." This was just another part of Yang that the Faunus loved. Her humor was variable in terms of quality, but as time progressed and Blake got to know her partner, the puns and jokes resonated with her more and more. Eventually, her enjoyment of Yang's jokes got to a point where she believed the blonde was tailoring many of her quips to her specific sense of humor. She was amazing in that way, thought Blake.

Soon, Blake was able to catch her breath and compose herself. During the time it took her to do this, Yang had made her way to the door leading into the house. She was waiting there with a hand extended in Blake's direction, expecting her to take hold. She did not seem as though she was going to open the door until the Faunus was ready as well. Blake smiled and began to move; however, on the way to her girlfriend, a chance thought formed that caused her to blush. The idea had been a plan that relied heavily on Weiss' doctrine of leaving no debt unpaid. In the invisible moment of hesitation the idea caused her, she decided that though the intended action may be very much atypical of her usual self and though she may have been reluctant to do something of the like before today, the idea was heartfelt and she was sure Yang would appreciate it. In that invisible moment of hesitation, she bolstered her courage.

Blake stepped forward. She saw Yang's hand automatically extend even further towards her, but instead of accepting it with her own as she was expected to do, she sidestepped the gesture so that she could stand directly in front of the blonde. The questioning look on her partner's face caused her to reconsider for a moment, but she continued undeterred. "Thank you for today, Yang." She closed her eyes and took a quick breath for a final boost of courage. When she opened them next, she forced herself to her toes for the extra bit of height needed to quickly kiss Yang's cheek. The kiss was hurried and probably needed more practice to perfect, but judging by the immediate reaction Yang had and the swell of pride that she felt, it more than adequately conveyed her sentiments. When she returned to her normal stance, she felt slightly dizzy and her face burned intensely, but all of this was made up for by the similarly blushing face of Yang that held a goofy, insensate expression. With this action, she knew that her own debt was repaid and that Yang now had an idea of the love she felt for her. "I'm sorry, but today just meant a lot to me. Thank you." She then took the hand that had somehow managed to stay extended and intertwined their fingers.

Yang tried to say something—she truly did give an honest effort—but all that she managed to do was babble incoherently. Seeing that this state was not going to change by simply standing in place and waiting, Blake pulled on her hand. "Come on." Yang simply nodded and followed along as Blake pushed the door open and entered the house. She closed the door and then smiled at Yang as they walked down the hallway. She was concerned about the extent of this reaction and whether or not it would be a lasting effect. She knew the action was surprising to Yang; it had been for her as well. Admittedly, that had been the first time she had ever kissed anyone, so she had no way to gauge the success of her endeavors other than by watching Yang's reaction. While the expression seemed to be exaggerated, such a response made her take pride in her efforts. Even if it wasn't objectively perfect, she felt as though it was to her. She could still feel the warmth of Yang's skin against her lips and smiled as she felt the heat travel throughout her body and comfort her completely.

As they walked down the hallway, Yang's lopsided smile gradually formed into a toothy grin. She never said anything, possibly still a bit shocked from the kiss, but by no means did she seem argumentative. The brunt of this boldly joyful grin was directed at Blake, causing her blush to linger. But this happiness only caused her smile to widen in turn. She was unabashedly in love. Her initial assumptions about the emotion she felt from earlier were correct in her mind. She loved Yang; there was no doubt about it. She didn't know if Yang felt the same way—honestly, she doubted she did—but she would remain steadfast in her resolve to make the blonde feel as loved as she felt. Blake gave a gentle squeeze to Yang's hand before facing forward.

As the two neared the kitchen, Blake began to hear the sound of someone speaking. Eventually, it became clear to her that that someone was Ruby and she was apparently alone which made it odd to hear her speaking to nobody in particular. "Um, no. Sorry, I can't say I know that." Her speech became audible when the couple was within feet of the kitchen's entrance. When they entered, Ruby immediately turned around and looked wide-eyed at both of them. She was holding a phone up to her ear. "Actually, she just came in." She paused for an apparent response. "Yes. Just a second, I'll put her on." Ruby covered the microphone as she said, "Yang, there's somebody on the phone." She sounded panicked, as though such a thing never happened.

"Cool!" Yang chirped. Even if she was naturally a lively person, her response here was somehow uncharacteristically over-enthusiastic. "Give it here!"

"Actually," Ruby squeaked, shying away from whatever it was she was going to say, "it's for Blake."

Blake was confused. How could she be receiving a call while she was staying at Yang's house? She blinked and immediately both her and Yang's moods sobered. Her thoughts immediately travelled to the possibility of the White Fang finally realizing her whereabouts—rather, she quickly accepted this belief as fact and began thinking defensively.

Her instinctual reaction would be to swipe the phone from Ruby's hand and hang up, but such a hasty action could only endanger the lives of her teammates. Instead, she steeled herself, ensuring that whatever she said would come out moderated and guarded. She held out her hand and Ruby gave her the phone.

"Hello." This was a voice she had not used since her last day at Beacon. It was uncomfortably cold and emotionless, yet it is what she needed if her suspicions proved to be true. "This is Blake Belladonna speaking. Who is this?" By giving her full name and a few seconds worth of speech, she was giving the other person on the line exactly what they needed to know, keeping everybody else on her team safe.

However, her expectations turned out to be quite opposite what reality presented her. Though there was a great deal of interference caused by telephone technology, Blake could hear an audible gasp that was decidedly not hostile. "Blake?" This feminine voice was so incredibly far from being hostile. "Blake, is that you?"

Before, Blake was prepared to fight. Now, all she wanted to do was cry; whether they were meant as tears of joy or sadness, she didn't know. She knew that voice somehow. Somehow, after all this time, she knew that voice. "M-mom?"

Yang's eyes widened in shock. "Wait. What?"

With tears in the corners of her eyes, Blake looked to her only remaining source of strength with a similar expression. As she watched her girlfriend's reaction to this bold revelation, she heard in her ear, "Oh my! Oh my! Cole! Cole! I found her!" Hearing this name, Blake froze in place. "Cole, I found her!" It had been so long.

"Blake?" Yang asked. "Blake, what's wrong? What's going on?"

The only way she could respond was by shaking her head, still unsure of how to react.

"Yes. Yes! No, she's in Vale. The city. I'm not sure; all I know is that she is staying with her friends."

"Come on, Blake. Speak to me."

"No, no. I'm sure she's safe. They are all huntresses."

"Blake?"

"Yes, I'm sure she's safe. Because she's on the phone right now."

Yang groaned and placed a calming hand on Blake's shoulder. "Blake, it's all right. Talk to me. Say something."

Blake looked forward and saw the calming sight of lilac and said weakly, "Yang, it's my parents."

She raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, I got that part. But somehow, I still don't know what's going on."

"Blake?" she heard her mother ask.

Instinctually, she responded, "Yes?"

She could hear a relieved breath being taken on the other end of the line. "You sound so grown-up now," her mother said wistfully. "It took so long to do it, but finally we found you." She, too, sounded as though she was on the verge of tears if she wasn't already. Blake had no way to respond to this statement. For that matter, she did not know how to react to any of this now. She was happy to have heard from them, but why now? And how had they found her? There were many more questions that were raised in Blake's mind that she simply could not bring herself to voice. Then, the voice spoke again. "Blake? Are we interrupting something? I'm sorry if we are; we can call you again later if it would be more convenient."

"Umm…" Blake could not think of an appropriate response. While she wanted to talk to her parents again and to take comfort in their reunion, she couldn't bring herself to say "yes." She had run away from them. Anything she could say would be awkward and wouldn't have any substance to it. Because of this, she wanted to say "no", but knew that if she did, she would be shutting away her family completely. She looked to Yang.

Yang looked confused but ready to help. The sight did not incent Blake to inform the blonde of the current situation while she was still on the phone, knowing that this could only make her problem even more difficult. However, seeing her this way—seeing her so grounded in reality and willing to assist her in achieving a similar state as well—brought a small, optimistic smile to Blake's visage. This smile gradually grew to become more confident and caused the tears welling in the corner of her eyes to dry. Simply seeing Yang gave Blake all the strength she needed to break away from her paralyzing fear and give an answer.

"I-I'm sorry. Now's just not a good time, but could you perhaps call tomorrow? I don't mean to be rude; i-it's just that it's been a long day and I'm a bit tired and I'm worn out and…" She sighed. "Mom, I'm sorry." This was not an apology for her run-on sentence, but rather for her abandonment of her family.

"Blake," her mother seemed to soothe, "it's all right. We know." Blake's smile widened at this. "We will call again tomorrow." There was a pause. "Please be safe. We love you, Blake."

"I-I…" She couldn't bring herself to say it. She did not feel that reciprocated the sentiments would be appropriate. "I will." Neither party acknowledged their inevitable farewell, causing a lengthy silence that was eventually punctuated by Blake hanging up the phone. She turned to Yang with a lingering smile and clear confusion evident in her eyes. In a single, exhausted sigh, all positivity made its way out of Blake's features. "What am I going to do?" she groaned.

Yang simply smiled and moved to embrace the drained Faunus in a warm, reinvigorating hold. Though it did not instantly raise her mood, Blake breathed easier and returned the hug, nuzzling close to hear the calm, rhythmic beat of the taller girl's heart and absent-mindedly playing with a few locks of golden hair with one of her hands. Something about this specific action—more than the other hugs she had received—told her that everything was going to be all right and that whatever challenge may arise, they would be able to overcome them together.

* * *

And thus ends Act II. If you are familiar with the five-act structure in writing, then you will understand why there was a lot to this chapter and why it is important for the chapters ahead.

I apologize if the introduction of Blake's parents is concerning in any way. I can see how it could have been unexpected and outlandish, but do not think that I am changing this story vastly because of this new variable. Because the perspective of the narration is based around Blake's experiences and thoughts, I needed to introduce her parents in a way that was surprising for both her and you, the reader. If you are worried about what this could mean for the story's integrity, then let me reassure you with two things: 1. It was my intent to introduce the parents at the end of Act II from the beginning, so this is not a spontaneous decision that could ruin the story. 2. Despite their introduction and importance, the story will still remain focused on Team RWBY. Though the parents will appear throughout Act III, they will not take precedence over the interactions of Blake and Yang. I just ask that you trust me with this.

The chapter's name, "Distance," was derived from the proverb, "Absence makes the heart grow fonder," and the variation where "Absence" is substituted with "Distance." This was meant to reference both the time Blake spent away from Yang while Ruby was being helped and the duration Blake had gone without speaking to her parents. At the same time, this title refers to how much Blake's personality has evolved from when she was allied with the White Fang. Of course, there are smaller, more subtle reasons why I gave this chapter this name rather than the original concept of "Revelation" (It was not supposed to be a Red vs. Blue reference, I swear.), but I will leave those open to interpretation.

There is something to be said about writing dialogue between Weiss and Blake. I enjoy writing dialogue for every character in this and I make as many opportunities to vary who is involved in a conversation, but whenever I get to write a scene where Weiss and Blake converse directly, so much can be accomplished. In this chapter's case, Weiss allowed Blake to realize how much she has changed and how not all of this change was for the better. Soon after, Blake was able to glean insight into the progress of the other partnership's relationship. Having one character that values knowledge and understanding (Blake) speak to another that prides intelligence and order (Weiss) allows for convenient exposition. However, dialogue between them alone should be relatively scarce lest I rely too heavily on it.

One final thing I would like to remark upon is the necklace Blake now has for Yang. I wrote the scene where Weiss purchased it for her as I was travelling to Austin for RTX. When I attended the RWBY panel and saw the trailer shown at the end, I could not help but quietly laugh to myself. If you pay attention to the shot of Yang in her alternate attire, you can see that she is wearing a gold necklace with a lilac stone in its pendant. The reason why I laughed was because of the coincidental similarity between the necklace of canon and the necklace of my story. How I imagined the amber necklace would look was amazingly similar to the necklace shown. I'm not claiming ownership by any means; these things happen. And I know I'm not the first to write about a character buying another character a necklace that symbolizes something special about their relationship. I just find the coincidence funny is all.

Thank you for reading. I am unsure when chapter ten will be finished. I expect it will take longer than this chapter but not as long as chapter eight did. I apologize for the cliffhanger that this ends on, so I will do my best to write the next chapter in a timely manner. Once again, thank you for your support; without it, I doubt this story would be as good as it is. You are all wonderful people.

Stay safe and stay tuned.


	10. Chapter 10: Sierra

To begin, I apologize for the length of this chapter. I said in a previous author's note that chapter two would be the longest chapter in the novel. As you can see, this chapter is longer. I will say that this chapter has a reason for being as long as it is, but I cannot excuse the lie I told. I am sorry.

Moving on to matters more grateful than apologetic, I must thank you all for your support of the last chapter and the introduction of Blake's parents. The feedback I received was encouraging and let me know I was able to establish these characters' existences in a way that was at least agreeable and intriguing rather than them being shoehorned in suddenly as I originally feared they would. If you have any remaining doubts about the parents' inclusion in the story, this chapter should be able to give you enough information to either accept or reject their existence.

Finally, thank you all for reading. It is consistently amazing to see feedback in the forms of both views and reactions. At the end of this chapter, there will be an elaboration for this particular gratitude, but before that, the chapter must come.

I encourage you to pace yourself with this. Chapter ten of _Valence_ is a long road to travel.

* * *

Chapter 10: Sierra

With a weary sigh, Blake placed her suitcase on the ground. What had been a brief and admittedly awkward phone conversation only a week prior had now amounted to this. "Excited" was a word she would not use to describe her current mood when "nervous" was a far more appropriate description. Her thoughts rapidly shifted between travel that was to come, preparation for said travel, her parents, her parents' reaction, and Yang. Further burdening her erratic thoughts were the physical detriments of early morning fatigue and hair that she had been in too much of a rush in to completely dry. Yet there was no singular thought that took precedence over another in her haste; all were equal in terms of priority and stressfulness. This was the cause of her sigh. She needed to breathe to collect her thoughts and reorient herself.

She had spoken to both of her parents numerous times since the initial call. At first, the conversations were more than a little emotional for both parties but eventually came to be altogether level-headed. The result of these calls and the cause of her current stress was an open invitation to return "home." Rather, her parents had implored her to visit them at least once during her summer break. She didn't completely know why she had accepted; visiting would only amount to seeing first-hand the strife she had caused by running away. They would undoubtedly berate her and expect apologies en mass for the pain she had caused. However, they did deserve apologies and she did want to see them again. This conflict coupled with the uncertainty of seeing such important people after so long was enough to make the calm, reserved Faunus nervous and afraid.

What caused even further stress was the sudden timing of her now scheduled visit. This pressure began when, during one of their more recent conversations, her father mentioned that she should, "come 'home' for Mistral's Independence Day festival." She couldn't bring herself to say no or that she needed a bit more time to prepare, causing her to accept almost immediately. Though, she couldn't say that she wasn't excited about this turn of events; she remembered enjoying the festivities when she was younger despite living on Vale's side of the border. Yet even this nostalgic opportunity could not break the inner turmoil that kept her from seeing the trip as a long-awaited homecoming. She saw the hours ahead as obligatory pain.

Blake stood in the living room of the sisters' house—her home, it began to feel like—as she checked over her internal list of preparations that needed to be taken care of and her itinerary of where she needed to go. However, due to the mounting anxiety over these past few days and the time she was required to depart, she had hardly slept at all last night, leaving her mental state almost entirely drained. An instrument on the entertainment center in the adjacent room read "4:25." This was early even for her and the light from the lamp in the corner of the room could only add to the dizziness she felt from tiredness. But she had to make sure everything was taken care of; if not for herself, then for Yang.

"Will you need a driver when you arrive?" Unsurprisingly, Weiss was up and alert with the prospect of planning and deliberation. Although she wore her regular sleepwear, she did not seem fatigued in the least. Rather, she had an energy about her was more akin to Ruby's own despite her metered composure. She was enthusiastic about helping to ensure that travel would go as smoothly as possible. While the action did seem to Blake as though an ulterior motive was in play, she brushed the thought off, thinking that this was simply tiredness making her delusional.

Blake groaned and shook her head in the negative. "A cab will do fine." At any other time, eloquence in speech would have been a priority for the young Faunus; however, exhaustion was the present champion in this sleep-deprived state.

Weiss hummed in disgust. "Suit yourself."

All that remained in the room was a cold, restless silence that begged Blake to continue her mental checklist. She could not. The compounded stress, fatigue, and anxiety was enough to make her unable to bring herself to do much of anything more than simply stand still and take as much time as she could to relax. However, a commotion from the hallway allowed a small, prideful smile to grace her features and cast aside these lethargic sensations for a moment.

When she turned to the source of the noise, Blake saw her girlfriend with one arm carrying her own luggage and the other slung over Ruby's shoulder as the two ambled into the living room. While Blake thought that she, herself, had been tired, seeing Yang's fatigued expression put her own to shame. Everything about her appearance told the Faunus that she was ready to leave except for her slumped posture and reddened eyes. It is to say that Yang's eyes were not only red from waking up at an uncharacteristic hour, but her irises fluctuated between lilac and scarlet, showing clearly her indignation. This seething emotion was focused on Ruby when the young girl yawned, "'Morning, Blake."

She did her best to smile back. "'Morning, Ruby. Sleep well?" Because she had initiated a conversation, she captured the unamused glare of the blonde. However, this was her intent; in her mildly delirious state, Blake wanted to tease Yang and make sure this entire morning wasn't completely dreary.

"Yeah, I guess. I was having this dream where there was this giant Grimm and me and…Actually, I'm kinda tired right now and wanna get back to that." Blake had a good idea of whose name Ruby nearly mentioned and she felt that Weiss had made the same connection, judging by her almost invisible change in sitting position.

She then looked to the girl who sent her an unblinking glare. "Hey, Yang," she tried to smile warmly but felt as though she lacked the energy to do the action adequately, "ready to go?"

There were many reasons why Blake had invited Yang to come with her, chiefly among them being that the blonde had proven to be a source of strength she could draw from in uncertain situations. Blake figured that if there was any time she needed this strength, it was during the coming trip. Furthermore, she didn't want to spend the next few days away from her and wanted to return the favor of being invited to the sisters' house for her summer break. She not only felt that the inclusion of Yang would be advantageous in just about every regard, but she felt that the trip would simply be more enjoyable if she came along. Yang seemed to think much the same even if her current demeanor told a different story.

Yang winced, possibly at the light, but more than likely it was the required thinking that evoked this response. "Yeah, sure, I guess. Why are we up, again? The sun's not even out yet." Blake was about to answer, but Yang continued. "Actually, forget that. Why didn't we book a later flight?"

"To be honest, I'm starting to wonder that myself," Blake groused.

"Isn't it obvious?" Weiss sounded as though she could laugh at any second. Of course, nobody else in the room would have treated such an action with anything but contempt and she doubtlessly knew this. Her attention was focused solely on Yang. "Leaving this early would allow you to arrive at a convenient hour. But you wouldn't know that, now would you? You don't look like you could think much of anything right now."

"Weiss…" Ruby pleaded. However, the young girl's voice was overpowered by Yang's.

"I'm not in the mood to play this game, Weiss. Say one more thing I don't like and I'm going straight for the death threats." To Yang's credit, Blake thought this reaction was relatively tame for her current state. Weiss simply gave an indifferent shrug in response. The fluctuating, annoyed gaze then turned to Blake. "Yeah, I think I'm good to go. You have the tickets and everything?"

Blake nodded. "Yeah."

"And the hotel? We got a room, right?"

Again she nodded.

"Great," Yang sighed, "then I guess we're set. You ready?"

Blake was prepared for the travel ahead of them, but was hesitant about what lied at their destination. Now was her last chance to back out. She could spare herself the pain of realizing how much suffering she had forced upon her parents. They probably hated her and had every right to feel that way. She ran away to join an organization that she would eventually find inopportune for her as well—she was a coward. Even after the pleasantries they had exchanged over the phone, she still believed they hated her. What was one more instance of running away when added to all the others?

No. She was done with running. She had a home and she had a family now. On top of that, she had a mother and father who didn't know who she was anymore and she would not tolerate that. They weren't the enemies in the first place; they did nothing more than ask her not to join the White Fang. They didn't deserve her wrath, her scorn. No. They were family too and they deserved reconciliation. She spoke bravely and with no hindrance to her voice other than the groggy pitch that had yet to escape her. "Yes."

Suddenly, Weiss clapped twice in quick succession, drawing Yang's glare and Blake's distant gaze her way. She needed not explain her reason for doing this as it quickly became evident when a personal assistant to the Schnee family briskly entered the room. The couple looked towards each other and Blake saw Yang's raised brow that seemed to silently ask, "Does she really want us gone this badly?" A response came in the form of an eye roll that said simply, "I'm too tired to care."

The man made his way to Yang's luggage first, showing signs of mental preparation as he stared intently at the suitcase. He stopped before it and didn't say anything as he firmly gripped the handle with both hands. He pulled hard and fast and was startled by how relatively light the case was compared to when the blonde left Beacon. This allowed Yang to smirk somewhat. "Don't strain yourself, little man." Blake sent her a reprimanding look for her impoliteness but she wouldn't have cared at this hour. As he shifted Yang's case to a single hand, he walked over to Blake, completely devoid of any indication of being upset at the comment. She stepped aside and allowed him to take her belongings. As quickly as he arrived, he left, presumably heading out to place their bags in the car.

With her valuables taken care of, Blake moved from her position, no longer needing to guard anything. Ruby looked as though she could pass out at any second, so the young Faunus decided she would transfer the burden of a tired Yang to herself. She moved to the sisters and relieved Ruby of the girl who, for some reason, continued to wear her heavier jacket when the less-armored variant was open for use. Taking the arm that wasn't draped over the young girl's shoulders, Blake pulled Yang into her own one arm carry, allowing Ruby to relax and make her way over to Weiss.

As the couple adjusted to their new hold, Yang quietly said, "I am _so_ sleeping on the way there."

"Yeah, that's sounds nice right now."

"You know this is your fault, right?" Blake knew the words were teasing, but some bitter part of her mind truly did see this early morning hour as something she could fault herself for. Regardless, she sent a teasing remark back.

"You agreed to come."

"How could I not? I'd be stuck here with the kids." Weiss must have overheard, because she sent a furious glare the blonde's way. However, Yang didn't react to this; her eyes were locked on Blake. "And besides," thankfully, her irises returned to their brilliant, lilac hue, "I wouldn't trade time spent with you for the world."

In her worn state, Blake could not escape the blush that had spread across her cheeks. The half-lidded look Yang gave her only intensified this effect even though she was fairly certain that the cause of this look was the blonde verging on sleep. She smiled back as best she could, letting her know the sentiments were reciprocated. Yang's grin widened in acknowledgement for but a second before she turned a serious look on Ruby and Weiss.

"Okay, listen up," she said firmly, drawing the attention of the room's shorter occupants. She was tired, but she didn't seem as though she was going to bow to the feeling when precautions needed to be taken. "Me and Blake are only going to be gone for a few days at most. When we come back, I don't want to see the house burnt to the ground, all right?" Ruby nodded. The lilac glare was sent Weiss' way. "And I don't want any funny business going on while we're out." The heiress seemed appalled at the accusation. "Stay out of my room, stay out of Blake's room, and stay in your own beds. If I find anything at all that makes me think that you two didn't follow my rules, somebody's sleeping in the garage for the rest of the summer and I've got a pretty good idea of who that somebody is going to be." Her gaze then turned back to Ruby. "Just don't get yourself hurt, okay? We'll be back soon."

Ruby rubbed one eye and yawned. "Okay, I get it. You'll miss us. Can I go back to sleep now?"

This response caused Yang to chuckle lightly. "Yeah, sure." At this, Ruby sighed and sauntered back to her room. "You ready?" Blake turned and saw her weary teammate smiling lazily at her.

She was not ready and she doubted she would ever be. She was prepared adequately in the physical sense, but her emotional state caused trepidation. Still, she took a calming breath and nodded before looking at the subtly excited eyes of her partner.

In their current position, Yang was not able to pull Blake along due to her dependence on the Faunus for remaining upright. Because this was the case, both girls put forth effort toward leaving the room. As they did, Blake saw the slight nod Weiss gave her that seemed to wish her well and returned the gesture in kind before exiting the room and moving towards the front door outside of which the heiress' driver was surely waiting. As they neared the wooden entryway, Blake noticed a very slight grin that forewarned her about the volume that was to come from the blonde.

"Hey, Ruby!" Yang shouted. "Take care of the house, all right? You're in charge while I'm gone!" When Ruby acknowledged the information with an unenthusiastic "Yay", Blake opened the door and led her partner outside. She happened to close the door right as Weiss ascertained the implications of this, causing the heiress' shout of, "Wait! No!"

Blake wanted to laugh at the reaction, but found that couldn't bring herself to do so for the muggy atmosphere of this pre-dawn morning in Vale reminded her of how tired she was. The air was thick and only added to her apprehension of the impending meeting. She wanted to return to her bed, sleep through the day, and forget about the reunion entirely but knew she could not. Instead, she stared out at the horizon, into the midnight abyss that mocked them still. The fearful point was so very near—it was today and Blake still had trouble accepting this fact—yet it lay on the opposite end of extensive, exhausting travel.

Never one for taking offence at observations considered in the end to be trivial, Yang pushed on, finding strength she had lost in her fatigue. They took the steps more slowly than usual, but once Blake stepped foot on the dirt path, she knew that there was no turning back. They were moving thanks to Yang's will and because of this, Blake knew that the only way to go now was forward. As they neared the car, the same man who had taken their luggage silently greeted the two and held open the door. Blake was grateful enough to verbally communicate a "Thank you." In her mind, this man had been the most abiding person she had come in contact with this morning, being that he was professional and made things convenient for the couple. He had been the only one to not show anger or annoyance.

She allowed Yang to enter first, seeing as how she was barely standing as it was. The resulting fall into the limousine was somewhat pitiful, but in a way also humorous. Yang immediately gripped the seat nearest herself and proceeded to pull and crawl her way into the darkest corner of the cabin. Blake would have helped had she not wanted to do something similar as well. When Yang eventually put on her seatbelt, Blake climbed in and shut the door behind her.

While it was doubtful Yang could see her in these low-light conditions—it was doubtful that she looked at anything for that matter—Blake could see the taller girl feebly attempting to find some sort of angle at the corner created by the far wall and the seat cushion that would be suitable for sleeping. Blake moved as quickly as she could to seat herself next to her girlfriend. After she put her own seatbelt on, she placed a comforting hand on Yang's shoulder. Almost immediately, the action caused the blonde to move away from her corner and towards Blake. The hand on her nearer shoulder shifted to the other as the Faunus pulled her partner nearer.

Yang rested her head against the inside of Blake's shoulder and leaned into the embrace. She sighed. "Blake?" The girl in question hummed. "Is our flight back going to be this early too?" Blake's disappointed sigh was all she needed to hear before groaning. "Fine. Wake me up when we get there, will you?"

Blake smiled warmly at the sight of a calm, drowsy Yang that somehow managed to stay annoyed and exude comforting warmth. This smile widened as the same prideful feeling she had felt during this past week overcame her. "Sure," she whispered, "I'll do my best if I'm still awake."

Yang shifted again, moving to a more comfortable position for the two of them. "Sounds good," she yawned. "'Night, Blake."

The Faunus could imagine Yang's eyelids drooping as she slowly fell asleep in her arms. The thought of a nap was intoxicating. Her own lids began to close as she leaned into the hold as well. "'Night," she replied in kind before planting a brief, soft kiss atop Yang's head.

As she drifted off to sleep, Blake didn't think about her family or the repercussions that awaited her. She thought of the girl in her arms and the warmth that she brought. She thought of the happiness that Yang allowed for and purposefully brought into her life. The frightening meeting wasn't what she thought about now. Instead, she anticipated the time they would spend with each other in the new environment. She didn't think about the travel ahead of them, but the warmth that beckoned her to sleep. Unconsciously, Blake held Yang tight, understanding why she was with her.

* * *

Side by side, the two walked through the crowded airport towards their terminal. Even if Yang wasn't presently holding her and protecting her from potential gazes from the masses, Blake felt safe in her assumption that not a single person here cared about her presence. Not only was it early for her, it was early for them as well, prompting the brisk, robotic pace of those whose personal lives or careers were dependent on soon-to-depart flights. While the urgency existed for her as well, she did not feel that a missed flight would be cataclysmic. Her parents wanted to see her again and she wanted to see them too, but she knew that the event was not time-sensitive. The stress she felt earlier this morning was found to be rather irrational when she thought about it. They had been the ones to send the invitation and initiate conversation after all these years. They weren't hostile just as the people around her weren't. Of course, there was always the potential for trouble, but perhaps this is why she invited Yang to join her.

She looked to the blonde, her incredible partner and beautiful girlfriend. Yang stepped to a jaunty, inaudible beat that doubtlessly played in her mind. The brief nap they had taken together had done apparent wonders on the both of them; Blake was finally able to compose herself and Yang was all but skipping through the crowd despite the hour still being considerably young. The time it had taken them to get to the airport from the house had seemingly been enough to reinvigorate the both of them for at least a short while. Lethargy still existed, but it was nowhere near as constricting as it had been before they left. Blake smiled at the sight of the girl by her side. Yang held a grin as well but not one that was caused by spur-of-the-moment happiness. Rather, this was the same grin that had existed ever since Blake first kissed her on the cheek. The memory of that moment was the cause of Blake's prideful, loving smile.

From the moment that kiss occurred, the two seemed to be in an unspoken agreement that their relationship had taken a step forward. Blake was still nervous about initiating such contact, mostly due to how inexperienced she felt. The kiss this morning had only been the third kiss she had ever given Yang—this includes the initial kiss on the cheek. Yang, on the other hand, made it a point to initiate such contact daily and with the same grin she currently held. With every touch came sincere, meaningful, and ordinarily pedestrian sayings that might seem trite to others but caused Blake to smile giddily. In the morning, it came with a simple "Good morning!", at night a "Good night", and during the day it was a tight hug and a "Thanks for coming, Blake." She would always return these hugs and replied gratefully herself. She felt loved even if she wasn't positive that her partner could plausibly feel the same way just yet. But in those instances and moments like the one before she drifted off to sleep this morning, she could believe Yang did.

The reason why she felt as though Yang probably did not truly love her was not because of the blonde's actions, but because of their collective stagnation. From what she had read throughout her life, Blake knew that she and Yang were doing a great deal of what couples normally did together—they went on dates, held hands, made it known to the world that they were together through their walks in the city—but had yet to actually kiss. The kisses they had given each other were either on the cheek or occasionally on the top of the head. Blake didn't mind these actions at all. The sentiments shown through them were wonderfully real and heart-warming, but she knew that a true kiss would be loving and far more emotional than all the others. This made her nervous. Not only did the emotional aspect of the action make her anxious, it was the predicted timing of the event. She knew that their relationship would progress again and, if she was correct, it would be rather soon. This evoked a response similar to the one her parents' call did: she was nervous because she felt that her inexperience would become obvious to the blonde, thusly pushing her away, but at the same time, she was excited by the prospect.

She loved Yang. She was in love with Yang. There were no doubts in her mind about how she felt about the blonde and yet she was apprehensive. Perhaps this current feeling was anticipation—anxiousness about change that would undoubtedly alter her life for what she hoped would be the better. Perhaps it was subconscious uncertainty that still managed to linger. Regardless, these doubts were known to be inconsequential. This was made apparent to Blake when her partner poked her arm to get her attention.

"Hey," Yang said before pointing ahead of them. "There's our gate. You think we have time to get something to eat before we go?"

Blake looked to the area in front of them and the digital clock that was set above their chosen airline's logo. Currently, it was a little before 5:30 and with a flight that was to board in about fifteen minutes, the Faunus doubted they could possibly purchase any food and make their flight. "I don't think so. We might be able to, but I don't want to risk it."

Yang shrugged. "Fair enough." She then took Blake's hand and pulled her towards the waiting area. "C'mon," she said simply as she led the Faunus away from the reasonably occupied seating area and towards one that was not crowded whatsoever. Seeing that Yang was doing this for her sake, Blake squeezed the gloved hand and smiled brightly.

The seats they chose faced the other crowd but were so removed from those faraway people that not a single glance was sent the couple's way. Yang sat down first and laid an arm over the back of the seat beside her, prompting Blake to lean into an embrace when she took her seat. Almost immediately, the arm descended to her shoulders and held her close. Blake closed her eyes and smiled absent-mindedly, simply basking in the warmth. It was only when the figure next to her yawned that she opened her eyes. "Are you still tired?"

"Yup," Yang stated flatly. "It's not natural for anyone to be up this early, is it?"

Blake chuckled. "This is when I usually got up while we were still attending Beacon."

Yang raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, well you're…you. You can do anything!"

She couldn't laugh at this compliment; it would have been rude because of the sincere tone Yang had when she said it. Instead, Blake smiled thankfully. It was sweet of her to think that way, but it could never be true. The only reason why they were seated apart from everyone else was because she couldn't handle a crowd. Yang, however, was a person the comment could justly apply to. "Yang, you have yet to show me something you can't do when you put your mind to it."

Blake had hoped that this would boost her partner's confidence but the result she was met with concerned her. "I wish that was the truth," Yang sighed.

Furrowing her brows, Blake appraised the girl beside her. Her sunny smirk was gone and in its stead was an apprehensive frown. She didn't seem dejected, merely thoughtful. "Yang, is something wrong?"

"Yeah, it's" she began, but quickly decided against whatever it was she was going to say. "It's nothing, really. It's…" She seemed torn about divulging the information. Seeing that she was at a loss for what to do, Blake did her best to replicate the way in which Yang often consoled her when she was stuck in a difficult situation. Because of their position and the hold that they were already in, Blake couldn't use her girlfriend's exact methods, but she tried nonetheless. She nuzzled into the side of Yang's shoulder, letting her know that help was available if she ever needed it. Yang let out a noise that was half sigh, half chuckle before taking the hand wrapped around Blake's arm and using it to scratch behind her bow. "Thanks, kitten," she said as Blake found her quickening heartbeat.

"It's just that…It's just that I'm kinda worried, you know?" Blake was about to ask what was worrying her when she continued. "I mean, what if they don't like me? I know I'm not the most polite person, but what if they think I'm rude?" The "they" in question, Blake assumed, meant her parents. None of this was true and she intended to counter these points, but she decided to let Yang vent her frustrations first. "God, they aren't going to like me. I didn't even wear the right thing! If they see me this way, they might think I'm…Do you think we could check in at the hotel first so I can change into something else?"

Now Blake was certain that she was talking about her parents. She wanted to say that such ideas were nonsensical, but considering her own state of mind last night and this morning, that sort of response would be hypocritical. Instead, she gave the same rationalization that helped suppress her own fears. "It's going to be all right. They invited us, Yang, so I believe they will at least be happy to see us. I doubt they would have agreed to you joining me if they didn't want to meet you. Besides, if I remember correctly, my parents are accommodating to guests and are fairly reasonable people. I think you'll be fine."

In the calls that scheduled this trip, Blake was faced with the decision of what to do with Yang. She desperately wanted to be around her for the entire summer, but was unsure of how her parents would possibly react to her suddenly being involved in their reunion. She skirted around the subject until she felt that an opportune moment arose to mention it. Unfortunately, due to the differing conversational natures of her parents, she never found an opportunity to turn the discussion in her favor and influence their decision.

Fortunately, when she built up the courage to finally ask, breaking a dialogue that was in the midst of occurring, her parents agreed that Yang should come for the festivities. They didn't enjoy the idea of her interrupting their reunion, but Blake had convinced them that because Yang was her partner and their lives were in each other's hands now, it would be ideal for them to meet—though, she only mentioned their partnership rather than their relationship for fear of disagreement. Blake was immediately and notably ecstatic about their permission, Yang even more so. Now, however, the blonde was beginning to worry.

"But what if I'm not? What if they don't approve of me?" Her speech was quickening. "Blake, I'm meeting your parents! Do you even know what that means? Of course you do; you know everything, but still! They're probably going to think that I'm asking for permission and I really don't want to be thinking about that sort of thing yet because I'm only seventeen and I kinda want to become a huntress first and do my own thing for a while before I even start to think about settling down with anyone. Not that it would be bad to settle down with you! I'm just saying—"

Blake cut her off by reaching over to her partner's other hand and gripping it in her own. However, due to the mention of what she believed to be marriage—specifically with her—her face burned and her grip was far stronger than she had intended. Yang didn't seem to mind. "It's going to be all right," Blake repeated shakily.

Yang sighed in what sounded like relief. "Thanks, Blake." Hearing this, the Faunus' blush began to die down and her grip loosened. "And sorry about mentioning…you know. It's a bit early to even think about that sort of thing. I guess that's why I'm so scared of your parents asking about it."

The blush intensified once more, but never reached the level it had simmered at only moments prior. "I don't think they're going to ask about…that. I think most of the questions they might ask you will revolve around Beacon. Then again, I'm almost certain the majority of the questions will be directed towards me." And with due reason.

"I hope so," Yang breathed. "I'm terrible with parents."

Blake felt the urge to reassure her once more, but the squawk of an intercom overhead dissuaded her from doing so. "All passengers for Flight 252 to Sierra please proceed to gate three to begin boarding. Please have your boarding pass in hand. Again," the voice repeated the message once more. The couple rose from their seats and moved hand-in-hand towards the gathering line.

Thankfully, there weren't too many people on this flight, allowing Blake to relax somewhat. However, as she neared the gate, the same stress from earlier began to gnaw at her relatively happy state. She shook the feeling off; her parents would be glad to see them. Yang reached the flight attendant first and showed her the boarding pass she carried. Once she was cleared, she moved ahead but waited for her partner.

As the Faunus handed the woman her pass, she looked over at Yang, grateful for her presence. When she turned to face the attendant, she found the woman was giving her an odd look—specifically, she looked at her bow. This caused Blake to glance at her partner and Yang to send a scarlet glare the woman's way. Respectively, the looks seemed to be of uneasiness, hope that the situation would not escalate, and finally barely contained fury. The woman did not see the look Yang was giving her but nonetheless handed the pass back to Blake and allowed her to board.

As the two entered the connecting bridge between airport and airship, Yang called the woman a name under her breath that was objectionable enough for Blake to warn the blonde about her language. Other than the instance of profanity, Blake saw Yang's defensiveness as lovable and noble. Even after the events of the year prior, Blake was still adjusting to the fact that she had people who supported her when she was faced with discrimination. Though, this particular time had been passable as it hadn't amounted anything more than a few seconds of hesitation. Even still, Yang's reaction reminded her that she was cared for and she was thankful for that. When they entered the ship's cabin, Yang took Blake's hand and quickly pulled her over to a far corner where there was not yet another person. It took a moment to realize why she was doing this, but Blake eventually noticed that the seats she was being pulled towards were nearly identical to the ones they had occupied on their flight from Beacon. She smiled at the memory that now seemed so distant. Yang sat and pulled the reminiscing Faunus down with her, resulting in an embrace that was disorienting but nonetheless comfortable.

The cabin was dark with the exception of a few fluorescent lights along the major walkways. This setting, with the addition of the view to the dark sky of early morning, reminded Blake of the sleep she had lost last night. Slowly, she felt fatigue overwhelming her again, but she would fight the sensation so that Yang could have company. The girl in question yawned and smiled. "You know, now that Weiss isn't here, I can finally do this." She lifted both her legs and rested them on the seats across them. She looked over to Blake. "C'mon. Relax, Blake. We've got like nine or ten hours 'til we get there, right? Besides, you don't want anyone sitting across from us, do you?"

Though the suggested action was uncharacteristic of her considerate nature, Blake felt oddly drawn to replicate Yang's position. She looked around once, hoping that there was nobody in the area who would object to what she was about to do. Seeing that this was the case, she propped her legs up on the seat as well. Due to the proximity of their feet, Blake tapped Yang's boot with her own to gain her attention. This worked well as the sunny expression became focused on her. "Hey, Yang? If you don't mind me asking, what is it exactly you have against Weiss?" She wasn't truly curious about the subject, admittedly. She simply wanted conversation that would hopefully allow time to pass by quickly.

Yang shrugged. "It's not that I have anything against her personally. I just don't like her attitude most days." She leaned her head back and closed her eyes, apparently attempting to go to sleep. Perhaps she was trying to avoid the conversation. Then again, it was still early and sleep was a reasonable idea to the both of them.

"Yet you consistently antagonize her without provocation." Not only did she make it a point to torment the heiress, she seemed to enjoy every moment of it.

Yang opened a single eye and looked at Blake incredulously. "Without provocation? No, there was provocation, all right." She sat back up. "You've seen what she's done to Ruby: the insults, the shouting, treating her like she's just a kid—you name it! I consider this payback for all she did last year. As her sister, I can't stand by and watch as Ruby gets pushed around with a smile on her face. She was made team leader! She shouldn't have to put up with this! When Weiss stops acting like a child herself and treats my sister with an ounce of respect, then we'll negotiate a ceasefire. Until that happens, though, I'm not letting up." She then returned to her previous position with a smirk. "But then again, she gets mad so easily and it's never not funny, so I guess there's that too."

It took Blake a moment to absorb this new information. She hadn't thought of her partner's actions in this light even though it was fairly obvious to her now. Before, she believed the feud that had gone on between Yang and Weiss had been based purely on disdain for one another. She believed that because their personalities so contrasted each other, common ground would be hard to come by outside of a combat scenario where teamwork was necessary. The testimony Yang offered made their arguments marginally less petty but still petty nonetheless. However, Blake saw now that the main reason for the blonde's less than amiable attitude towards the heiress was out of sisterly protection. It somewhat made sense to her due to Yang's history of being protective—and, at times, being over-protective—as well as the value she seemed to place on her family. In a way, this perspective allowed Blake to side with her girlfriend on the matter. If she was to be completely honest about the situation, she knew that Weiss had been rather rude and unforgiving at times, especially earlier in the year.

Thinking rationally, however, Blake could see no reason why Yang should keep her sister away from her partner. The blonde had talked about her desire for Ruby to be treated as an adult but simultaneously implored her to distance herself from Weiss. Shouldn't the decision whether or not to befriend Weiss ultimately be Ruby's choice? For that matter, did Yang's advice matter to her sister at this point? Ruby had made her admiration for Weiss fairly evident and the heiress had practically told Blake how highly she thought of her partner. Yang could potentially shift the tide of her sister's relationship but that would contradict what she had been saying. Blake wondered if she was aware of the slight hypocrisy. "If you have nothing against Weiss, why are you hesitant about Ruby pursuing a relationship with her?"

This caused Yang to look up at her again, this time with both eyes open and her expression showing disbelief. "You know my sister's fifteen, right?"

"Sixteen," Blake corrected. This raised a flag in her mind. Yang knew just about everything there was to know about Ruby. How she didn't know her own sister's age meant something.

"Same thing!" She began to believe that this lapse in awareness was caused by her partner's protectiveness—perhaps irrational thinking was the means she was using to convince herself that Ruby could not pursue a relationship. Seeing that this could be the case, Blake felt like backing off and leaving matters of the family to those within. However, Yang wanted to talk. "Look, if she wants to go out with someone, I'd be fine with that! But Weiss is too old. Ruby needs to find someone closer to her own age instead."

For only a moment, the intercom interrupted their conversation. "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard Flight 252 from Vale City to Sierra. Preparations are nearly complete for take-off and we expect to ascend in approximately fifteen minutes." The speech after went ignored by the couple.

With the way she had ended her previous sentence, it sounded as though Yang wanted to have a discussion about the matter rather than simply conclude the conversation on a final note. "But it's obvious your sister sees something in Weiss that she doesn't in anyone else. And I don't think that either of them sees a problem with the age difference."

"But she's sixteen! And Weiss is eighteen! That's two years apart! And you know that if something happens between the two, it'd probably be illegal, right?"

Blake raised an eyebrow. "First, I doubt Weiss would be the type of person to initiate what you're implying. Second, they will always be two years apart in age. When Ruby turns eighteen, Weiss will be twenty. If they still feel the same way as they do now, then what would stop them from pursuing a relationship then? And if we go by your logic, why should we be dating and not them? You're technically a year younger than I am and we haven't had any complaints yet, I don't think."

Yang met her gaze confidently for a few seconds before sighing and bringing her hands into her lap. "I just…Why Weiss? I get that Ruby likes her and all but why did she have to pick a person who pushes her away every time she gets close? She's fighting a losing battle, Blake, and I don't want her to live through that."

"Well," Blake began, "why did you pick me?" The look Yang gave her was certainly confused and curious, but even more importantly, she seemed shocked that the question was asked. She didn't want an answer; this was for the sake of rhetoric. "Yang, you must have known that Human-Faunus relationships are few and far between. You must have known of the repercussions you could receive from Faunus rights activists both for and against the cause. And you certainly must have been aware of how my prior affiliations could affect our future. Yang, if this divide that stood in our way was so easily crossed, what can an age difference do to a girl who's finally opening up to somebody and another who has been infatuated with the other for months?"

Yang didn't say anything. Her head looked to the hands folded in her lap as she sighed. To Blake, seeing her partner this way hurt. She was conflicted but she had been like this before the conversation started and it was none of Blake's doing. However, she felt entirely responsible for this remorseful expression that Yang now held. It was haunting in a way to feel Yang's Aura receding and leaving the air around them cold and melancholy. Perhaps Blake had gone too far. No, she began to think that she had indeed gone too far and impeded on personal matters that had little to do with her. She felt sick because of her own actions but she knew that her own wellbeing wasn't important at the moment.

She placed an arm over Yang's shoulder and pulled her near. Like in the limousine earlier, Yang nuzzled into the side of Blake's shoulder but unlike before, she did not exude the same gleeful warmth. Blake rubbed her arm slowly, hoping to rekindle the fire within the blonde that had seemingly been suffocated. "I'm sorry," she tried to console. "I have no business lecturing you on this. She's your sister, not mine."

Yang sighed and a brief wave of warmth radiated off of her. It took a few seconds but she finally replied. "No, it's all right. It's my fault. It's my fault Ruby and Weiss can't find happiness—I'm standing in their way. I just thought that Weiss was using her or turning her against me. I don't know. I was probably being overly defensive, huh?"

Blake shook her head. "No, I don't think so. Caution is an admirable trait, but too much will stifle growth. You've protected Ruby well so far, but I think it's time you trust her judgment."

The faint warmth of her partner's Aura subtly increased. This meant progress and allowed Blake's mood to pick up as well. She didn't smile yet, she regretted the way she had acted, but she felt happy that Yang was recovering. "Thanks, Blake. I'm not sure if I'm ready to let Ruby go, but this helped. I still don't want her to be with Weiss, but that's probably just because of me. I might let them go out for a bit to test the waters but I'll keep an eye on them. No matter what, she's my little sister and she's underage." She sighed again, this time, bringing back even more warmth. "Sorry about arguing like that. I guess I got carried away. I think it's the travel."

Blake cracked a smile. "Yeah, I think it's getting to me as well. Again, Yang, I'm sorry about saying that. I had no right to tell you what to do when it comes to Ruby."

"No, it's fine. You were right, mostly. It actually helped a lot. Thanks." She then nuzzled closer and let out a yawn. "Do you think we can go back to sleep?"

The innocent way in which she used "we" in her question made Blake's smile widen. "Sure," she said. "I don't think staying up and worrying about the trip is going to be very beneficial."

Yang let out a short laugh. "Why do you think I'm trying to sleep?"

The hand that had been rubbing the blonde's arm moved upwards and into the mane of flaxen hair. Blake didn't say anything in response, she simply chuckled lightly as she combed through her soft locks. It was an absent-minded gesture that seemed to lull her girlfriend to sleep fairly quickly and allowed herself to take her mind off of their debate. It was simpler to just think of Yang. Ruby and Weiss were their own people and could make decisions for themselves. The only person that mattered in Blake's world at the moment was the girl in her arms who had just fallen asleep. There was no need to discuss an age difference or potential racial unrest. Neither mattered in their situation. She loved Yang and there was no external force that could possibly deprive her of this. In this moment, all that existed in her world was her girlfriend and the love she shared with her.

She looked up from the golden sight below her and through the window beside their seats. The sun was beginning to rise, revealing the hazy city that was asleep for once. Only a sliver of orange had crested the horizon yet it was able to spawn streaks of violets, magentas, reds and all colors in between in a natural painting of warmth and singularity. At this hour, all of the city's residents were equal in tiredness but were to be energized soon by the light of day. Blake, however, began to slip once more into the unconscious realm of slumber, clinging protectively to her wonderful partner. The final sight she saw was of Yang's sunny, golden hair before she succumbed to the warmth that enveloped both her heart and body.

* * *

In a sea of shadows, there was a bright white orb. It had a pull to it but it was no star, not in the literal sense. Blake couldn't look away from this odd light. She had no choice. The dark that surrounded her was immobilizing; wherever else she looked, she saw pain, torment, anguish—all the suffering that she could not bear to accept as fact—and she could not bring herself to challenge the ideas. The light, however, gave off a sensation of comforting warmth. There was no elevated temperature empirically associated with this object more than there was an emotional rise in closeness despite the sizable distance between the two entities. She never questioned its existence. It just was and she accepted it.

She simply watched the light, believing for some reason that if she was to approach, she would be left alone in the dark. It didn't move at first and this made Blake feel safe, but the longer she watched it, the more apparent it became that the orb was distancing itself. With its backward motion, it took away the warm sensation, leaving Blake emotionally cold. She felt strangely sad and angry—rather, furious at herself because she had forced the bright presence to retreat and despondent due to the crumbling security she had not realized she had become entirely dependent upon in this void. This horrific sight of apparent abandonment was punctuated and further corrupted by the slow shift from white light to a deep, depressed blue glow.

For some reason, seeing this vile color from the dear source made Blake feel as though she was on the verge of sobbing uncontrollably. This would break a streak that had existed since she was a child and first ran away. She wanted to scream, to express her primal frustration at powerlessness savagely and sincerely. But she wouldn't cry. That blue light was her fault and she knew there was no reason to cry when she had an obligation to rectify the situation.

She pushed forward, trudging against the current of shifting shadows. It took the entirety of her person to do so, but once she took the first step towards the fading light, her pace became easy and fluid as the resisting shades dissipated. When she looked ahead, the hated blue light was gone. In its stead was not the stationary white light that she had so missed, but a moving, warm, yellow radiance. She was never once disappointed by this spectacle; immediately, it brought her a sense of security and happiness that made the previous orbs seem insubstantial in comparison. She didn't know what it was about this new one, but it made her gleeful—exuberant even. It made her want to laugh aloud and she did, feeling no shame at the positive emotion. As she walked forward, she found that the yellow orb neared her as well. It seemed happy too and thusly allowed for her smile to widen.

At the moment the two bodies were intended to intersect, the shadows of the void faded away and were replaced with a brilliant, golden hue that took up the atmosphere and washed away all her fears. That lone orb was gone, but Blake did not worry. Its presence had been and would be with her always.

* * *

This was Sierra: the miles of impenetrably dense forest sheltering this road and the town ahead, the winding paths amongst the hills that increased in numbers and elevation, and the perennial, spring-like atmosphere that seemed to defy geographic understanding. Since leaving the airport, the couple had yet to witness another instance of civilization—let alone the border town that this area was named after—other than the taxi in which they rode. In a way, the sight of these trees passing rapidly by was calming, evoking the thought that everything to come was natural and benign. However, anticipation was rising on the parts of both girls. They hadn't spoken much at all since they landed, but their eyes were trained on the road ahead as their hands were locked nervously together. This was Sierra: Blake's technical home.

The quiet between all three of the car's occupants was unsettling. The driver had proven himself to not be the conversational type, which Blake was fine with, but what concerned her most was Yang's lack of usual speech. The only sounds heard in the vehicle were the rattling of its frame from the rough roads and the infrequent clicks from raindrops left by a past rainstorm dropping from the trees above. Despite the noises' collective ability to remove any dead air that might have existed, they somehow made the ride feel even more awkward than it already was. Blake didn't care, though, and she didn't think Yang could either. What waited at the end of this journey was far more pressing than momentary silence.

Blake involuntarily shuddered from the stress, accidentally tightening her grip on Yang and causing the blonde to look over in concern. Not wanting to be the one to break the silence, Blake simply gave an appeasing smile, silently telling her partner that everything was all right. She seemed to accept this as she returned Blake's squeeze with her own before looking back to the road. The Faunus' gaze, however, would linger on her girlfriend.

The yellow light was almost certainly representative of Yang, she thought. What other entity could have exuded such warmth and inspire the happy feelings she felt? What the meaning of the golden light meant—or what any of the other lights meant for that matter—was beyond her current comprehension. All she knew was that Yang was unsurprisingly involved in her dreams and that she meant something incredibly significant to some part of her unconscious. The projection of Yang that had appeared before her, however, was odd because she had dreamt of Yang before and during those occurrences, the blonde took the form of her natural body. This abstract and potentially metaphoric version of her caused Blake to worry, not because of the appearance it took, but because of the desolation it replaced.

A bump in the road shook not only Blake from her introspection, but the entire cab, erasing any remaining tiredness that may have hindered either girl in this mid-afternoon hour. Despite this surprise, their grip on each other was steadfast and would not be easily broken. Yang looked sheepishly at Blake and was returned with a quiet, if not nervous, laugh.

"Hey, Blake?" The question was unexpected but hardly alarming. When Blake looked to her, the blonde was prompted to continue. "Are you gonna be all right?"

She wanted to say yes but knew such a prediction could never be fully accurate. "I think I will." Again, the only sounds in the car came from in or around the vehicle; neither of the two felt like talking. Still, Blake could tell that Yang was worried. "What about you?"

"I hope so." The two returned to staring at the road ahead.

The road curved ever so slightly but it was enough to reveal a petrifying sight. In the distance, the forest was clearing in a way Blake had seen before—in a way she had seen many times before. She gripped tighter onto the gloved hand, trying her hardest to keep her thoughts suppressed. The desired bleakness of mind was soothing. Because she wouldn't have to think of anything, her thoughts could not harm her and force her away. But as they neared the end of the tree-line, cracks began to form in her defenses. The car was paradoxically bolting at what seemed to be unfathomable speeds while moving hardly at all. It was only when she saw the house that she felt the need to panic.

Fortunately, Yang was there. Simply by rubbing Blake's knuckles with her thumb, the blonde was able to contain the deluge of fear that nearly dismantled the young Faunus. Her breathing was still erratic but she didn't want to run away any longer. She looked once more to the only house in these woods and knew that her parents were waiting. She knew she was ready on some level even if she didn't believe it herself.

The taxi slowly closed in on the house and gradually came to a stop before its curb. Before the driver could say anything and interrupt her focus, Blake paid the fare and stepped out of the car and onto the road she grew up on. Thinking about the slab of stone in this light nearly made her lose her balance, but she kept composed and moved to retrieve her luggage. Now was not the time for weakness. Now was the time for retribution and apology; she had to stay strong.

By the time she reached the cab's trunk, she found Yang waiting beside it, looking at her with a very obvious expression of concern. Blake shook the sight off and attempted to open the trunk, undeterred. She was stopped by her partner who kept her hand on the compartment, keeping it closed with her greater strength. A critical, almost angry look was sent the blonde's way but was cut short when Blake found herself wrapped in a hug. In that moment, she relaxed and returned to the warmth and somehow believed for a fact that everything was going to end beneficially for the two of them. She returned the hold and sighed.

"It's going to be okay, kitten. It's going to be fine." With one hand, Yang pulled her closer and with the other, she rubbed her back. She repeated the reassurances until Blake was nodding along to each sentence, showing that trust was placed in her. "I'll carry our bags. You've got enough weighing you down right now." Blake nodded feebly. "It'll be all right, I know it. They're your parents, Blake. It'll be all right."

When Blake sighed, Yang released the hold and stepped back to apparently appraise her expression. She must have approved of what she saw because she smirked and opened the trunk. Blake wanted to smile and thank her, but knew that all the energy and enthusiasm she had left should be focused on the building before her. She stepped onto curb and, in effect, onto the foot of the short walkway leading up to the house. This was where she was raised, had her first memories, learned her first subjects, and where she first decided the White Fang was more important than family. She knew better as she stared up at the white house that had not changed in the slightest. The picket fence was as sturdy as it ever had been, the yard was neatly mowed, there were no marring accents on either of the two stories—it seemed to her the same as the day she left it. It was a lot to take in. Though she could not see inside, she could see the window to the living room below and what she believed to be her old room above. There was nothing wrong with this house—no reason she should have run away—and yet she was afraid. She didn't know if the memories frightened her or if it was the possibility of returning, but she was scared nonetheless.

The taxi could be heard driving away just as the sound of footsteps neared Blake's side. "Well, this is it, right?" Blake nodded. "And we're going to have to walk all the way up there and ring the bell?" Unfortunately, Blake nodded again. "Great," Yang drawled. "Well, you asked me to come with you, so I'm here to help. Ready to go on your mark."

Blake looked over to her partner and tried to smile, but the resulting action still came across as a frown. "Thank you for this, Yang."

Yang shook her head. "Don't worry about it. It's the least I could do."

They stood there, staring at the door for a few seconds before Blake sighed, "Well, I guess there's no point in drawing this out any further."

Her steps were deliberate and measured; not too fast, not too slow. She didn't want to delay the inevitable but at the same time she did not want the moment to come. Yang matched her speed and stayed by her side to give her the illusion that the pace was relatively normal and natural. In hindsight, Blake would consider this next reaction as humorous, but at the time, it was disconcerting. There was one point on the path—she didn't remember where specifically—where her anxiety faded away and was replaced with her instinctual fight-or-flight response. In this instance, she was subjected to the same indifference and automation that she fell under in the midst of a battle. All fear vanished and the door became her primary objective. She wouldn't realize her own actions until after she rang the bell.

The next thing she saw was her finger raised only a small distance away from the doorbell's button. She had pressed it. Her eyes widened as she brought down her hand, fearful of the series of events she had set in motion. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Yang shuffle, shifting her position a few times before taking a nervous breath. She was trying to compose herself and by seeing this, Blake was compelled to do the same. She quickly evened her gaze, corrected her posture, and removed any trace of emotion from her expression as she waited for the inevitable response to her call.

There was no sound from behind the door for the first few seconds. Until the noises occurred, time slowed to an apprehensive crawl as the aesthetics of the door before the two became more pronounced and noticeable. This was the only thing they could pay attention to. When they heard the deadbolt unlock, they were alerted to the presence of the house's occupants behind the door. Blake's breath hitched before the door could open, but when it did, she was absolutely silent for the sight in front of her.

She had no words to describe them. They looked the same as when she left them, but now older—greyed from what she could only assume was the stress she had caused them—and smiling. Her father seemed to have taken the absence far worse than her mother had. Blake was shocked by the scarcity of hair he had left; every strand remaining was in one of numerous stages of greying and collectively formed a feeble imitation of how he had once looked. He seemed unfazed by this effect however as his eyes held the same smile they always did when she was younger despite the tears he was holding back. Her mother seemed to be the more concerned of the two. Stress had gotten to her judging by the silver that could be spied infrequently around her roots, but she seemed not to be rejoicing quite yet even if the smile she held argued otherwise. Blake knew the look she was being given; she was being analyzed and appraised. She knew her mother was judging her not because of what she had done, but to see who she had become instead. The smile showed acceptance of whatever it was she saw.

Blake didn't know which party moved first, whether it was her or her parents; all she knew was that the end result was her being wrapped in a hug from both of them while she returned the affection. In that instant, all fears of rejection and scorn were dismissed and were replaced with relief and happiness. She didn't cry and her parents didn't either as they took solace in this homecoming and lack of hostility. They were not angry and Blake was glad reparations could begin. Without the distortion of a telephone, the clarity of tone and voice allowed Blake to realize that she had actually returned and this was all real. "Welcome home, Blake. I've missed you so much." Her father's voice was shaky but she knew he meant what he said.

"I'm sorry," Blake managed to say.

"Don't worry," her mother soothed, "we know. We are just glad that you returned unharmed. What a relief it is to see you safe and…grown up. We missed you, Blake. We feared the White Fang had corrupted you. We're just happy you're home now." When she said the words "grown up," Blake knew at that moment exactly how long she had been gone for and felt ashamed for every second she put them through.

"I'm so sorry," she nearly sobbed.

She could feel her mother shake her head. "There's no need for that. You're home now and that is restitution enough. There is nothing to be ashamed about. You've made your amends by coming here and we have forgiven you. We still love you, Blake. You may not believe it, but we always have, even when you chose to leave us. But that doesn't matter now—it's a matter of the past and cannot be changed. All that matters is that you are here, safe with us, and that you know who you are after years of struggle. Do not worry, Blake. You're home now."

Her blinking increased in frequency; she could feel tears pooling at the corners of her eyes and she could not stop the emotions that flowed through her otherwise collected mind. Happiness had overtaken remorse, allowing for the formation of tears of joy and relief rather than guilt and sorrow. She held on tighter to the two forms as a hand she believed came from her father held the back of her head. "She's right, sweetie. We never stopped loving you and we never will. You don't need to apologize to us because there was nothing we were mad at you about in the first place. You did what you thought was right and there's nothing wrong with that at all. You're here now. That's all the apology we'll ever need."

Had nothing changed at all? Did they really not care about her abandonment of them? Of course they did. How couldn't they? This acceptance—this kindness—didn't make sense to Blake. How could an apology not be needed after what she did to them? An apology was all she had, it was all she had prepared and they were telling her that it was unnecessary? They were holding her when they should be pushing her away. They should be pushing her away and now they were telling her that she was home and that she was with family and that there was nothing she could have done wrong. It didn't make sense. She had betrayed them and they were hugging her and telling her that everything was all right. It didn't make sense how little they had changed and how incredibly hospitable they were being to her when she believed she didn't deserve any of it. She wanted to be apologetic but she was finding herself to be grateful and she didn't know why. Because this situation did not make any sense to her whatsoever, the tears that welled in her eyes began to fall.

Her parents must have noticed this reaction and redoubled their consoling efforts. Her father began to brush her hair while her mother repeated "It's okay," until Blake was able to agree. If they were acting this way, being as reactive as they were, they must be telling the truth and being sincere. Perhaps they didn't care about the way she shrugged off their initial pleas and all they truly cared about was her well-being. The thought was a similar one she had had before when she thought of Yang. When she heard the screams of pain in her nightmare, she didn't care how or why Yang was in trouble, she merely cared about her partner's safety. It had been an incredible relief to find her alive and well. Perhaps this was what they felt, or some variant of the sentiment. Believing this was the case, Blake's tears eventually slowed and stopped. She had somewhat come to accept that her parents welcomed her back whole-heartedly.

Her mother loosened the hold she had on her and her father ceased his motions. She could feel him disengage from their group hug and thusly looked to what he was doing. His gaze had turned on Yang who had been waiting patiently during a moment that must have been awkward for her. Blake was initially worried that the blonde, now the second tallest person in the area, would be shunned for whatever reason by the towering figure that was her father. His bright yellow met her sunny lilac. Blake had assumed that her father's personality had changed since she left, but was genuinely surprised by how genial he was to her partner. "Well, hello. I'm Cole, Blake's dad, and you must be Yang, right?"

"Yeah," Yang drawled, obviously distracted by something. Her gaze was trained on an obscure location above Cole's eyes. Her staring was a decidedly rude action in Blake's mind, but she could not bring herself to say anything even if she thought Yang was her present responsibility.

Her father laughed a hearty laugh. "You don't think I'm a Faunus, do you?" Yang's eyes noticeably widened before returning to direct eye contact with Blake's father. "It's all right. We get that a lot. Not all Faunus have ears or tails. Lilian and I are just among those that have less noticeable traits." It took Blake a moment to understand that Yang's apparent rudeness was caused by an admitted lack of information.

Without the bias of personal perspective, the parents can be viewed as outwardly regular in comparison to the human race. No immediate Faunus traits were visible, but the genetics of the two were indicative of the Faunus race. The only noticeable qualities that set these two apart from others the blonde had seen before were the father's great height and eye coloration and the mother's uncanny resemblance to Blake, sans bow and underlying ears, of course. It was a confusing sight for Yang to see her partner and the mother standing beside each other. Somehow, the mother, this Lilian, seemed to be far more composed and reserved than Blake had ever been without expressing an air of boredom or indifference that often plagued the girl's demeanor. Her father on the other hand was very much the opposite of the mother yet somehow the same. She could see the relation to Blake; the way he acted was reminiscent of how Blake often behaved when she was in a teasing or playful mood or simply wanted to humor the blonde's jokes—as such, Yang grew to like this man almost immediately. These people were so similar to who Blake was at a fundamental level, but different in ways that had been forged through time and friendships made with the younger of the Faunus. Yang could see the similarities and knew they were more so family to the young Faunus than she was.

Going by what Yang had told her earlier about her trepidation with parents, Blake thought that the blonde was panicking internally, causing the delay in response. However, Yang seemed to defy her own logic as she questioned with no hint of trepidation, "Well, what's your 'less noticeable trait', then?"

Again, her father laughed and caused a confident smirk to appear on Yang's face. "Me? I have the eyes of a hawk. Pretty neat, huh?" The eyes were a bright, flat yellow—similar to Yang's hair—and held nothing but mirth despite their inherent predatory nature. "That's how I got the name 'Hawkeye' Cole around my friends." He then proceeded to laugh at his own joke—an action Blake had nearly forgotten about.

"Uh-huh, sure. And how many friends do you have that'll actually call you that?" Blake had to make an effort to keep herself from telling Yang to keep the teasing to a minimum especially around those she was only just meeting. However, she refrained from doing this because she knew that it was in Yang's nature to speak in such a manner. Yang was the more conversational of their partnership and as such she would find first impressions far more simple than Blake ever could.

Her introduction seemed to work as the father laughed once more. When Blake looked to her mother, she saw her close her eyes and shake her head with what appeared to be the faint beginnings of a smirk. "Not many, but the name's starting to stick."

Yang raised an eyebrow. "I don't know. For some reason I doubt that. Are you sure you didn't just make it up while we were standing here? I don't mean to be rude, but that name kinda fell flat."

"I guess Blake wasn't kidding when she said you were an energetic one, was she?"

"No, sir! Yang Xiao Long at your service! It's nice to finally meet you Mr. and Mrs. Belladonna. I'd shake your hand but," she lifted the suitcases in her hands slightly, "you know." How she had managed to shift the conversation into her favor after initially coming off as awkward was something Blake could not comprehend. Still, she smiled at her partner and her graceful conversational ability.

Now it was her mother's turn to speak to Yang. "It's a pleasure to meet you as well. Blake spoke highly of you and it seems her description was accurate." It was a very cordial and very warm voice that showed sincerity and meticulousness in speech. It reminded Blake of how she spoke herself whenever she chose to be wary of her words—rather, it had been the voice she had attempted to replicate after all these years. "Thank you for taking care of our daughter. We're glad she was able to escape the White Fang alive."

"Oh, I'm not the one who deserves the praise here. Blake's gotten me out of trouble more times than I can even begin to count. She's kept me in-line when I was getting out of hand and always lets me know when I'm being reckless. If anything, Blake's been taking care of me. She's the best partner I could've asked for." Hearing Yang speak so candidly about her made Blake smile warmly. Although she would disagree with her partner's statement that she deserved all the praise—Yang had helped her in ways she might not have recognized yet—she felt glad that her partner felt this way. Unfortunately, due to the limited knowledge of present parties, Blake forced her expression to flatten and appear grateful rather than loving.

"Well it's good to hear that she lived up to her promise of helping people, even if the people she's helping aren't who she initially thought they would be," her father mused, this time looking towards Blake as he spoke. He smiled widely for a moment before looking back to Yang. "Hey, if you want, I could take those bags for you."

One of the reasons why Yang continued to hold onto their bags—other than wanting to be helpful—was what the two had brought with them. Inside their cases were their weapons. They were kept there because of the airline's restrictions on weaponry and due to the uncertain reactions her parents would have about her bringing such instruments into their house. For these reasons, Gambol Shroud was secured, its blade having been removed, a trigger lock put in place, and a safety flag seated in its chamber just so Blake could be sure nothing would happen. Ember Celica had been disassembled with the intention of reassembling it when they settled into their hotel room. Because these weapons were in the bags, Blake felt comfortable with Yang holding them but not anyone else. Because Blake only knew her parents' view on violence (their stance on owning a weapon was yet to be determined), she knew that letting them know of the contents of their baggage would be counterintuitive to their reunion.

Thankfully, Yang was able to decline the offer without alerting them to her motives. "No, thanks. I've got 'em. It'd probably be better if I held them anyways; that was a long flight and dragging these around might help the circulation kick back in."

"Well, in that case, let's get you set up in a room so you can put your stuff down and take a rest." Yang's gaze diverted from Cole and moved to Blake with concern clearly evident. Somehow, Blake had not accounted for this possibility. "What? Is something wrong?" he asked.

The looks being traded between the partners were able to silently discuss what to do in this situation. If Blake was correct in her assumptions, Yang seemed to be willing to cooperate with either their own plan or this new idea from Blake's father. Blake, however, was hesitant. Not only did she want to make the most of her reservation, she felt that if they were to spend their duration here, it would be awkward and too close to her parents for comfort. Because Yang seemed to be willing to follow her lead, Blake made a quick decision. "N-no, it's nothing." She shook her head to clear the nervousness that still clung to her. "Yang and I reserved a hotel room before we came here. It would probably be best if we stayed there."

At first, Blake didn't know why her father smiled the way he did, but she quickly figured that it was because her previous statements had been the first rational and coherent things she had said to her parents since returning. "I don't see how that would be the best thing you could do. You're home now and we have your old room waiting for you. Wouldn't it be best to stay here, in a place you know and at a location where you will easily be able to reach the festivities tomorrow?"

Before Blake could even begin to consider the logic, her mother spoke. "Staying here would benefit you financially as well. I doubt that reserving a room for these next few days was inexpensive. It is likely you will be refunded if you choose to cancel." Blake sighed. They were utilizing both practical and logical arguments and were rapidly swaying her opinion. The final push in the direction of accepting came when her mother said, "It would also be good to have you home once more, Blake. You've been away for long time and we would like to see you again."

"Fine," Blake breathed. Their arguments made sense to her and she found that the main reason why she disagreed with the idea was because of her own nervousness that had already been proven unfounded. On her father's face, a bright smile appeared that instantly made her confident about her choice. However, before she could finalize her decision, she looked to her partner who also held a smile which existed perennially rather than momentarily. "Yang, would you prefer to stay here or at the hotel?"

Yang shrugged. "I'm fine with here. If we're able to get into town faster, I'm all for it! That and the area reminds me of home kinda." Her smile widened before she looked to Blake's father. "That is, if you'll let me stay with you."

In a historically rare show of emotion, her mother's smile could practically be heard as she accepted Yang into their home. "Of course, Yang. You are a guest of this town and we would be ashamed of ourselves if we chose to cast you aside. You have kept our daughter safe and we thank you. Please, follow us inside. See this as your home as well."

As Blake was coming to terms with the fact that they were finally about to head inside the house she had been raised in, her mother released her hold and moved to the door behind her. She watched as the door opened and the interior was revealed, causing a rapid return of the trepidation that had once hindered her. The same painting of her family's crest that existed when she was a child was placed directly behind the door in the small foyer. This sight was why she fought and why she could not move. Her mother entered the house in a series of quick, fluid motions that showed efficiency and purpose. Her father then strolled up to the door, waving the two to come along as he waited at the threshold. They were welcoming her back so easily. It still didn't make sense to her, but when she saw Yang step in front of her, she knew that it didn't need to.

Yang seemed to be excited. She was practically bounding with every step she took and seemed restless when standing still before Blake. "So," she chirped, "what kind of Faunus is your mom? She seems smart—maybe even too smart. Is she a dolphin Faunus? I think I heard somewhere before that dolphins are smart."

Had the situation or the speaker been different, Blake would have been fairly unamused. However, because Yang was asking an innocent and genuinely curious question and because Blake was far too stressed to be offended at the moment, she simply sighed. "Yang, it's complicated with her. I'll tell you later when we have the time."

This caused the blonde's eyebrows to furrow and her energy to decline to a state where she was relatively calm. "Is everything all right, Blake?"

Again, she sighed. "Yeah, I'm fine." In actuality, she wasn't. She was stressed, afraid, and anxious—emotions that she knew she shouldn't be fostering but fostered nonetheless.  
"That was a lot to take in. I'm just," worried, "tired is all." Seeing that Yang didn't appear to believe her, she forced a smile to reassure her girlfriend. To do so required the young Faunus to convince herself for the moment that these emotions were irrational and would be overcome after she fully reunited with her parents. Because Yang still did not seem convinced, Blake willed herself to say, "Come on. Let's head inside."

Yang obliged even if her expression continued to show concern. With bags in hand, she turned towards the door and began moving only once Blake took her first steps. She doubted she was ready for this despite the assurances that her parents gave about being welcome and not having to be apologetic. With each step she took, she got closer to an inevitable end of which she did not know the meaning of. She was able to keep moving only because Yang was there to act as a model for what her behavior should be. It was an odd thought, but it was the truth; Yang, being charismatic and surprisingly quick-witted in a conversation, made this experience far more bearable than it would have been had she not come. Perhaps, Blake thought, this present situation—the trepid entry into the home of her parents—was akin to the times her partner led her through a crowd in when anxiety and memories of the White Fang were affecting her. Seeing the situation this way made entry far easier, she found. With her eyes trained on Yang alone, Blake was able to enter the house, ignoring the crest mounted on the wall, as her father closed the door behind her.

The memories, however, could not be escaped. Instantly, visions of childhood appeared before her. Times of freedom, ignorance, a lack of responsibility, and every other form of disconnection to the wretched world that was present Remnant haunted her. She wanted to return to those times, to leave the house with her father and get ice cream, to nap in the living room as her mother read to her, and to stay sheltered behind the walls of this warm, secluded residence, but she knew that her personality had undergone far too many changes and her allegiances had shifted one too many times. Her innocence was already gone and there was no way of returning it. She had been a member of the White Fang and she had grown adjusted to violence to the point where her desired career now was of a huntress rather than her childhood dream of being a "reader." She saw the evil in the world—the pain, the anxiety—and returning here seemed to salt the wound. Returning made her desire for the innocence to return and it upset her because it could never happen.

"Yang," her father said, breaking his daughter from her introspective prison, "there are stairs just around the corner. If you head on up, I can show you to your room so you can get settled."

"All right," Yang called back and instantly, Blake knew she would be alone. The blonde didn't give so much as a second glance as she turned the corner and took the steps at a strong, consistent pace. Perhaps it was her nerves, but Blake felt as though her own pace increased as she too turned the corner to watch her partner and girlfriend ascend. In her haste, she was left alone with her parents in their living room.

Her father, the tall, kind man of her past, walked around to her front and smiled down at her. She looked back, but couldn't bring herself to smile in response. She wished that she had never left; because she had left, she now didn't want to return. They did not deserve her lacking treatment of them. But it didn't seem to matter to her father who suddenly hugged her. "Welcome home, Blake. Welcome home." He then kissed the top of her head and backed away, smiling. She found herself subconsciously smiling as well. She was happy on some level to see them again, but at the same time, she knew the kiss meant nothing to her since it did not come from Yang.

"I-I've missed you too, dad." She hadn't realized what she said until after she said it and was thusly surprised. Her subconscious must have taken control and contradicted her conscious thoughts. From an ideological standpoint, she was opposed to and afraid of this place. From a sentimental perspective, however, she was glad to be back and had been tearful in how relieved she was to see her parents after all this time.

He smiled. "I'm gonna go help your friend and show her around and then I'll be back. In the meantime, your mom wanted to talk to you." Blake nodded in acknowledgment and watched as her father stared at her proudly for a few seconds before heading up the stairs.

With him gone, all that remained was her mother standing beside an arrangement of chairs around a coffee table. Blake took a few steps forward before her mother spoke. "Take a seat, Blake. I will be with you in a moment." She then turned and exited at the far side of the room.

She was alone now. Wasn't this what she wanted? She moved to a chair and sat automatically. There wasn't much thought placed in her actions at this point; she was overwhelmed, confused, and relieved all at the same time and it was enough to make her calculative personality fail her. Her mother said "a moment." How long was a moment exactly? A moment could mean a literal second or it could mean as much time as the person needed. Blake didn't know how much time she would need to come to terms with this situation, but then again, this wasn't her moment. This lack of knowledge and understanding was stifling.

She blinked in order to recompose herself for the umpteenth time. She was worried despite her knowledge that her parents wanted her to be here and she knew that these doubts were slowing the passage of time. A distraction was necessary at this juncture so that she could distance herself from these self-destructive thoughts and move closer to the already established rationalizations that would keep her calm. She looked around and saw that over the years, the only change that had occurred in the room had been the arrangement of furniture. The walls were still the same oddly calming white and the fireplace seemed to remain unused. The house was not as warm as it once was—she doubted it ever would be—but it exuded a sensation of familiarity and closeness that the sisters' home had yet to affect her with. This was not her home, but the memories existed and she knew that she shared a bond with this place that would never be broken entirely.

A series of light, clinking noises pulled Blake from her reverie. Her mother, the woman she had once aspired to be, walked into the room with two cups of what was known to be tea from the scent alone. Perhaps this would calm her nerves in the way it had every other time this action occurred when she was a child. While Blake thought herself to be versed rather adequately in literature both classical and contemporary, she knew that her mother would always know more about the medium. Because the two were so engrossed with the literary arts and, more so in Blake's case, centered their decision-making processes around the knowledge they obtained from texts, it had been established early on in Blake's childhood that whenever a situation arose where tempers got the better of their disagreements, her mother would make the both of them tea so that they may reach an understanding and end hostilities. It was a reference in a way to a cherished book they had read together when Blake was younger. Like the instances before, this happening was seen as a light at the end of a very dark, very bleak tunnel of anger and distrust.

Wordlessly, her mother handed her a cup atop a saucer before moving with her own to sit in a chair directly opposite her daughter. Blake looked down into the cup, seeing the black liquid and feeling the subtle rise of the steam before meeting the ambiguous, hazel eyes of her mother. They were as analytical as they had always been and yet there was a current hint of trepidation behind her gaze. However, she never broke eye contact as she lifted the cup to her mouth. Blake was not nearly as confident and unwittingly averted her gaze for a fraction of a second before drinking as well. Simultaneously, the two Faunus set their cups down before the eldest spoke. "There is no reason to fear us. We harbor no ill sentiments against your choice and you are doubtlessly aware of this. Why, then, do you still shy away from us?"

Blake was silent. She had tried to find any ire in her mother's tone but could find none. Lilian was patient and waited until Blake could bring herself to respond in a manner that would befit this ritual. Eventually, she said, "I am afraid because I should be. You should be livid and dad should be furious because I betrayed both of you. I fear that underneath your calm, relieved appearance, there is a vindictive beast stalking the moment when retribution may come justly. I fear this, but I know it cannot be true." She had not spoken in this way in a long time. In a way, it was refreshing, but at the same time, it was difficult. "I fear myself and what I have caused."

"Do you have a present urge to flee—to run from your problems now with knowledge that they will be dealt with in the future?" Blake envied her wisdom, somewhat. She knew she could have trained herself to think and speak in such a prudent fashion that lacked hesitation but instead chose to fight.

"No, the urge is to cower—to shrink away into obscurity so that I can avoid repercussions that I cannot accept will never come." Her mother took a drink of her tea and instantly Blake knew she had something acceptable to her.

"Then you do fear your actions. But what of the fear of yourself? If you lack the urge to run, then your resolve is unwavering and you will never cower because of who you are."

"I fear myself because of what I've become. I've run twice—from you and from the White Fang—and I know I more than likely will run again. I've betrayed you and Faunus everywhere once already and I am afraid I have the capacity to repeat this crime. Others rely on my assistance now and I have made contact with you once more. Another flight would not only damage you and the others, it would break my resolve."

"Caution is an essential trait to have." Her mother smiled sincerely, lifting the weight of the conversation incredibly. The action allowed Blake to breathe easy and drink from her tea calmly. "I am proud of you for acquiring the trait and exercising it with your affiliation with the White Fang. You may not remember it by this point, but you used to be quite the stubborn little girl. It did not take long for them to get you to fall under their spell, but once they did, there was no arguing against you." Blake's gaze lowered back down to her cup. "However, it was ultimately your choice to leave and we cannot fault you for the decision you made."

Blake's eyes darted back to her mother. "How?"

"Blake, you showed prudence in your decision despite the moral implications it eventually revealed to you. You were enamored by their propaganda and read it extensively. You read everything you could find on the organization and while the information you acquired skewed towards making them seem altruistic, you did your research nonetheless. I cannot say that I am proud of the choice you made, but you did what you thought was right and I cannot fault you for that."

To hear her mother disagree with her choice in running away was strangely reassuring. Though she was not angry, she disagreed nonetheless and it grounded the situation for Blake in reality—it made sense to her. "I want you to know that I'm sorry," Blake said. Her mother took a sip from her cup, showing her intent on listening. "I understand that you have forgiven me already, but I need to apologize. I showed poor judgment in siding with the White Fang over you and dad and I've never stopped regretting that moment. I realized that you were right about them and how they were taking a more militant route far too late. I know now that I made a poor choice but I cannot regret my decision. I'm sorry, mom. Regardless of whether I like it or not, the things I've learned and the choices I've made have shaped who I am."

"As they should. But you say you do not regret the person you have become and yet you say you fear yourself at the same time." The look she was giving Blake was not condescending as much as it was challenging and encouraging. "How can that be?"

Blake took a moment to consider her answer. In that time, she took another sip from her tea and allowed the calming warmth to relax her entirely. Her mother had convinced her that she was not hostile—in disagreement with a prior choice, but far from hostile. The stress of the reunion began to fade as they returned to an old ritual as though there was no gap in between. Blake set her cup down. "I cannot regret who I am now because it cannot be changed. I may grow fond of or disgusted at one topic or another, but the paths I've taken and the impressions I've made on people cannot be undone. I do not regret who I am because I am effective at what I aspire to do in life. But I need to fear myself so that I don't make the same mistakes I've made before. I've suffered, mom, and I know I could suffer again. The only thing keeping that from happening is the willingness to move forward. I must be confident in who I am to move forward and fearful of what I've done to ensure I never make a mistake again."

Her mother let out a small, controlled laugh that did not strike her as rude or condescending. Rather, the laugh was to convey prideful happiness. "Very inspiring." This was the final phrase that broke the tension between the two of them and allowed Blake to smile sheepishly. Perhaps she had been a slight bit idealistic in her speech, nearly verging on self-righteous, but she knew her mother didn't see it in this light. These talks, in the past, were not meant as appeasing explanations to one another but instead a resource for the speaker to understand why an action was done in both practical and logical viewpoints. "When you say you are afraid of making the mistakes you have already made, I assume you are implying that you no longer associate yourself with the White Fang?"

"I don't." Her mother nodded in appreciation. "However," her mother raised an eyebrow, "I cannot say I am completely finished with them. I would like to avoid them, but because of the way I left the organization, there will always be the possibility of reprisal. I've fought against them a few times this year and I'm certain they know of my prior involvement as a member. I also knew a few…ranking officers who doubtlessly remember me. I no longer associate myself with them, but it would be foolish to think they were finished with me. Until I can clear my name with them, I must stay on my guard."

"Which is why you chose to attend the combat school." They took another drink from their cups.

Blake took a moment to compose a response. "That was not the sole reason for my attendance."

"Naturally," her mother mused.

"But, yes. I saw Beacon—Beacon Academy—as a place where I could surround myself with allies of a similar cause who would not fight against me because of what I did before enrolling."

"And this is the reason why you wear a bow over your ears?"

Blake's ears twitched and she suddenly became self-conscious of the fabric. It was relatively new and she had not realized that her parents were not used to seeing it. She set her cup and saucer on the coffee table before slowly reaching up and untying her bow. She was around other Faunus and Yang and thusly felt as though she could free her ears again, if not for herself, then for those around her. With her ears freed, she became calmer, more at ease, and accepting of her current situation. She replaced the fabric with the cup and sat back in her seat. "It was," she replied. "Now, though, it serves to protect my friends instead of myself." The raising of her mother's cup spurred her continuance. "Early on in the school year, my team realized that I was a Faunus." She sighed. "Actually, I let something one of them say get to me and I was not able to control myself. I told them about my association with the White Fang."

"And they are still your friends?"

Blake nodded. "A member of my team, Weiss Schnee," her mother's brows rose in surprise, "had been making false claims about the White Fang and Faunus in general. It was easy to take in stride at first, but the continued slander of our people and the belief that the current White Fang leadership represented us all got to me eventually. I guess I still sympathized with the original White Fang cause because I argued with her and soon after revealed my heritage."

Her mother recomposed herself. "I must say that having a member of the Schnee house on your team was wholly unexpected. I trust that your feud ended favorably?"

"She still holds healthy reservations against the organization, but she's made considerable progress towards differentiating the Faunus population at large and members of the White Fang. I see her as a friend now after all we've been through. She is an honorable warrior and a loyal teammate. She's intelligent as well; I honestly think you would enjoy speaking to her."

"Perhaps," she mused as she looked down at her tea. "Blake, would you care for another cup?"

"No, thank you." She still had a little more than half remaining due to how much she was speaking.

"Very well." Her mother retired her cup to the coffee table before correcting her sitting posture and addressing Blake. "Now, while you were at this school, I trust you remained vigilant with your studies."

"I did," Blake nodded. "The academy has acquired a reputation as the premier school for Grimm and combat studies. As such, the curriculum is intensive at nearly every point in the year. Though, because it _is_ a combat school, I cannot focus on research and static education alone." She expected her mother to disagree with this choice due to her remembered adamant stance against fighting of any sort.

Her mother paused, a rare show of momentary deliberation that told Blake she was giving the matter genuine thought. She sighed. "Are you confident in your decision to become a huntress?"

"Yes." Blake didn't miss a beat with her answer.

Lilian closed her eyes and nodded slowly. "Very well. It is your decision to make. Tell me, then, about the school."

Before Blake could say anything, her unveiled ears perked at a nearing noise. Aware of this reaction, both Blake and her mother looked to the stairwell and waited as the two pairs of footsteps made their way to the ground floor. Her father came down first and was followed by Yang. Seeing the blonde after becoming acclimated to the idea of returning to her parents allowed Blake to smile warmly at her. This caused her partner to wave at her as though they were obliged to stay quiet. Nonetheless, Blake waved back before regarding her father. "Hey, Lilian, I'm going to finish showing Yang around. After that, do you want to decide on where we're all going to eat tonight?"

"That sounds wonderful," she replied. She then turned her gaze to Yang. "Yang, if you have any preference, please make it known. We would like to thank you and Blake for coming and it would only be fair if you chose after the travel you subjected yourselves to."

Yang shrugged. "I'm up for whatever, really. Honestly, at this point I'll eat just about anything because _somebody_—not naming any names—decided it would be a good idea to not eat anything at the airport so that we didn't miss our flight." Blake laughed quietly at this reference. "Anyways, I don't know what there is to eat around here. If I chose I'd probably ruin everyone's night. Would you mind if I passed my choice to Blake?"

"Not at all," Cole said. "Blake? Is there anywhere you wanted to eat again?" Blake shook her head. Admittedly, she had forgotten most of what this town had to offer and after all of the hours of travel she and Yang had endured, she wasn't in much of a decision-making mood. "All right, then; we'll figure this out later. Sorry if I'm bothering you. Take all the time you need." At this, he moved towards the door at the far end of the room—the kitchen if Blake remembered correctly—with Yang in tow. As she passed, the partners exchanged warm smiles that communicated comfort and satisfaction until they lost sight of each other.

Once the blonde was out of the room, Blake returned her attention to her mother who held a subtle, yet oddly contemplative expression that was interpreted as her desire for the story to continue. Blake took a sip of her tea, which at this point had become cold. "May I continue?" Her mother nodded. "You are already aware of its prestige as a combat school and as such, it specializes in self-defense tactics and strategies designed to force back the Grimm. Unlike the White Fang, Beacon's only goal is training hunters and huntresses to fend off the coming Grimm threat; there are no raids on Dust companies nor are there any training activities designed to target groups of humans or Faunus. I can assure you that we are fighting for a just cause at the school. There are no politics when it comes to the Grimm."

"I am inclined to believe you. However, you must be aware of the greater threat associated with being a huntress. The White Fang, at an individual level, could be reasoned with had your situation turned unfortunate. The Grimm cannot be communicated with and have no inherent emotions. You must be aware of their lack of empathy."

"I know. I have a trusted team that will provide assistance whenever I may need it, so I am certain that we will be able to overcome whatever challenges we are faced with. I have complete confidence in both their abilities and my own. I promise that we will be safe."

A smile coming from this woman meant a successful explanation; in this present case, Blake was relieved to see this expression. "I am glad to see that you have taken others' assistance into consideration. You used to be insistent on remaining completely independent." She let out a short, quiet chuckle. This chuckle slowly faded away and whatever found humor there had been was ended with a brief hum. "But becoming a huntress is ultimately your choice. I would be kidding myself if I felt as though I might have influence in your actions any longer. I may not like the revelation, but you have grown, Blake, and the decisions you make are yours alone now. If you desire to be a huntress and you see that pathway as a means of accomplishing your goals—whatever they may be—then I will support you. I only ask that you stay aware and keep yourself away from unnecessary danger."

For the slightest of moments, Blake believed she saw the corners of her mother's eyes glistening with tears, but this spectacle was shaken off with another casual laugh. "As much as I pride myself on our similarities, I will always know that you have your father's heart above all else. You're always trying to do things—attempting to change the course of events—and rarely for personal gain. It's remarkable the lengths you would go to argue a point just to make the world a just place, if only marginally. I'm proud of you, Blake—proud of who you've become—and your father and I will always love you no matter what path life may bring you down."

It was funny in a way, Blake thought, that tears would pool in her eyes instead of her mother's, but what she felt was an urge to cry while simultaneously laugh. How foolish she had been to think that her parents fostered hatred for her. Now she didn't know whether to sob until her apologies were conveyed pitifully or to laugh and brush aside the stress of the day entirely. The end result was partly a laugh and partly a sob as she hiccupped, "Thank you."

Her mother shook her head. "Come, now. There should be no crying at this statement. It should be understood by now." In a rare occurrence Lilian Belladonna, the moderate and wise woman Blake had known as both mother and mentor, was being light-hearted and friendly. This dried Blake's tears to a small degree and allowed her mind to clear the cluttering thoughts of sorrow, happiness, and forlorn humor brought on by unchangeable events of years prior. Slowly, she brought the lukewarm tea to her mouth and drank the rest of it, knowing that the practiced action would better allow her to heed her mother's advice. She set her drained cup onto the table beside her bow before righting her posture, wiping any stray tears left in the corners of her eyes all the while. The sight she was met with when her vision became unobstructed by her own hands was of her mother smiling warmly. "Perhaps it would be ideal to move on to a distracting subject. Tell me about your friends. I am genuinely curious about this team you've spoken of."

Blake subtly cleared her throat before speaking, not wanting the lingering emotion prevalent in her voice to misrepresent her friends. "Well, three of my friends and I are a part of a combat team with the title, 'Team RWBY,' spelled with a 'w' instead of a 'u.' The name is an acronym that uses the first letters of our first names starting with the team leader's initial. The members are Ruby, Weiss, myself, and Yang." Her mother nodded to show that she was keeping track of the information being presented to her. "Ruby is Yang's younger sister by about two years. She was granted entry into the school through outstanding merit when she worked alongside a huntress who so happened to work at the school. She is adaptive and enthusiastic while being an incredible fighter and motivator. I would not worry about her, mom. I trust her with my life as do the other members of the team."

As her mother seemed to mull the thought over, she asked, "What role does Weiss have in your team? I would imagine that a Schnee in a position that does not have absolute power would be a difficult factor to deal with."

Blake sighed. "She was…hesitant to accept Ruby as our leader at first, but she eventually warmed to the idea." She clenched her jaw in disappointment. She meant to say "warmed to the idea" in a way that was referential to the affection between the two and had not intended on anyone else catching onto the allusion. Unfortunately, her mother had studied literature far longer and with greater intensity than she had. She could only hope that she didn't notice her implication. "Now she is a great asset to our team. Admittedly, her study patterns are more thorough than my own, so she is able to allow the rest of the team's education to be comprehensive, whether Yang and Ruby like it or not. She is also able to fill a role that I doubt any other team has at the school. Due to her connections through her family's company, she is able to get us many of the resources we may find necessary at a price I cannot bring myself to ask about."

"I am happy to hear that she is willing to work with you. She seems as though she is a vital member of your team."

Blake felt the need to interject. "Every member of a team is as vital as the rest."

"Of course. I meant no disrespect and I apologize if my words came across in that way. You speak respectfully about her and I simply wished to indulge you." Her hands shifted in her lap. While this action may have seemed insignificant to most others, Blake knew that a change in posture—however slight—meant that a pressing subject was about to be brought up. "Now, what about Yang? What is your friend's purpose as a member of your team?"

Given the opportunity to speak kindly about her girlfriend, Blake's heart instinctually warmed as she attempted to find a way to convey who the blonde was in a relatively concise manner. "In every team, there are two sets of partners. Yang and I are one partnership while Ruby and Weiss are the other. A partner is someone a hunter or huntress is meant to train, learn, and fight with until a certain level of synchronicity is achieved. Yang, like her sister, is adaptive and surprisingly quick-witted in dire situations. I understand that she may not seem like the smartest person in the world, but she is intelligent; her knowledge lies with diplomacy and close quarters combat more than any other subjects, but she passes every class she takes with respectable marks. She's also the most selfless person I've ever met. I have seen her risk her life to make her friends happy. I trust her completely and I know she wouldn't let me be harmed."

The previous contemplative pauses that her mother took were relatively brief but accomplished a great deal of deduction in such a short time. The time she was taking to think about what Blake had just said was concerning to the young Faunus. Even more concerning was the eventuality of her mother realizing the relationship she had with Yang.

She had not told her parents about her relationship for fear of disapproval and shame. As she had never dated anyone before, she was unsure of how her parents would react. She expected her mother to disagree simply because it seemed to be in her nature before Blake spoke to her today and she believed her father would take the stereotypical role of an overprotective father who would immediately become hostile towards Yang. She still had reason to believe that they would resent her decision, but what she feared was their protectiveness clashing with Yang's. It was a scary thought to think of what might happen if her parents forbade Yang from seeing her. Any result from the exchange would be gruesome on either a physical or emotional level. She hoped that her parents would be able to respect her reasons for dating the blonde, but she doubted it would be the case. For this reason, she failed to inform them and went so far as to avoid the thought entirely since she arrived.

With every second that passed, Blake became more certain that her mother was becoming aware of her relationship. She nearly jumped when the woman before her shifted her hands once more and took a calming breath. "Blake, what is your relation to your friend? I am aware of your status as training partners, but unsure of how you relate personally."

Blake hung her head low, wishing that there was a cup of tea she could look into. She could not meet her mother's gaze because she knew the question was posed with knowledge of the answer beforehand. She sighed. "We're…" She had to say it. Her mother already knew the answer and it would be cowardly to not admit to a relationship she was so proud of. "We're dating," she said quietly.

Her mother hummed ambiguously. "You are aware of how I feel about relationships between humans and Faunus?"

Blake nodded solemnly. "I do."

"Then you must also know the worry I place upon them? I do not condemn the act, but I do stress caution in engaging in such a matter. I trust you are aware of the stigmata and anger associated with your relationship?"

"I am." She lifted her head to meet her mother's gaze confidently and with no intention of reversing her decision.

She hummed again. "Were the situation so simple, I would leave you with the advice of prudence, but your situation is distressing when I consider the future of our family. Practically speaking, I am sure you are aware that neither you nor Yang will be able to continue our family lineage. I am also certain that you are knowledgeable about the compounding distaste society will place on you for being in the relationship you are in. I know these facts myself, but I need to know if you can live with this knowledge."

She was definitely disappointed in Blake's decision, yet she seemed open to reason. "Since I left for the White Fang, I have learned a lot. I've learned that decisions in the short-run are rarely beneficial. I've learned that trust is earned over time rather than placed immediately on a person you would like to see as your friend. I've learned that true friendship does not form from aligned goals alone, but by understanding, reliance, and the willingness to support the other no matter what situation may arise. And I've learned to think for myself.

"Yang is an incredible person who captured my respect the moment we became partners. Where I am lacking, she is able to pick up the slack. I do so in kind for her. This bond that we share is strong and motivates us to achieve goals we've been hesitant about for all our lives and allows us to protect one another with greater fervor, making us a stronger unit on the battlefield. Mom, I've thought more about my relationship with her before following through with it than any other decision I've made in my life. I've entertained possibilities logical, practical, physical, emotional, mental, and whatever other categories of reasons you could imagine. I am aware of the selfishness that I am showing with this decision, but I find this selfishness necessary. I don't think we should have to worry about the rest of the world when the matters concern only us. Love is inherently selfish."

As her mother sighed, Blake's eyes widened at what she had said aloud. She had let slip the word "love" and there was no taking it back. Furthermore, she was now very much aware that Yang was on the same floor as her and possibly heard what she said. Now was not the right time to reveal the information to her. The young Faunus' mind began to race, but was slowed by her mother's speech. "I find it difficult to disagree with your logic. I want you to know that I will continue to be hesitant about your relationship with your friend; however, it would be wrong of me to allow you the freedom to join the White Fang and not the freedom to live happily. You are your own woman now, Blake, and I believe you have been for some time now. This is your decision to make and I will not stop you. I just ask that you stay aware of the anger you and Yang could evoke from members of society."

In her mind, Blake had won and she thusly smiled. "I will," she assured her mother. Relieved of this final secret, she no longer felt stress from returning to her parents. She was happy now with the knowledge that they accepted her for who she had become and the choices she had made. Even more than this, her mother's understanding of her relationship inspired confidence and pride. In convincing her that the relationship was thought out and meaningful, Blake felt as though she achieved a small, personal goal. She was happy she came back.

The sound of laughter coming from the direction of the kitchen alerted Blake to the approaching presences of her father and her girlfriend. The two seemed to be laughing at something and hearing this made Blake happy that Yang was connecting with her parents as well as she was. The sounds grew closer and she turned her head to look at the point which the two would emerge. When she saw her golden partner enter the room, her heart was set alight with the bright pride she had felt over this past week. Both their smiles widened substantially at seeing each other again. Yang moved quickly to her side, seeming to forget whatever conversation she was having. Yang winked at Blake and the seated girl replied with a widened smile. Somehow, this communicated between the two of them that everything had turned out all right.

Blake's father walked in soon after and without breaking his stride, moved to stand beside Lilian in a similar way Yang was standing near Blake. Everyone was in varying states of calm, happiness, and rest, all being on the positive sides of the respective spectrums. "Well," Cole said, breaking the comfortable silence that had fallen over everyone in the room, "shall we get dinner somewhere?"

The group would decide fairly quickly on their intended destination, reveling whole-heartedly at the celebration that was to be held both today for Blake's return and tomorrow for a quite different reason. In this time, Blake would find that her previous worries were nonsensical and she understood why. Her fears had been brought about by the coupling of her shame at her past actions and the lack of information she had on her parents' personalities. Now she knew that everything was all right and that her relationship would hold. Yang didn't seem to be nervous any longer, but perhaps that was natural for her. She was amazing in every way to Blake and despite the trip's intended focus being centered on the reunion with her family, she could not distract her gaze from Yang. She loved her and there was no force on Remnant that could break the sentiment.

* * *

Dinner had gone well. Yang proved her worries about being awkward around Blake's parents entirely wrong. She was naturally charming and at one point even made Blake's mother laugh—though it was a short, quiet laugh, it showed genial mirth nonetheless. Her father seemed to get along well with Yang due to their similar senses of humor and upbeat attitudes. It was likely that this favor was the reason he had been so readily accepting of Blake's relationship with her when he was told about it. His logic was that if Blake was happy with her situation and if she would continue to be safe under Yang's apparent protection, then the relationship was agreeable and he would be in support of it. Yet this was the first—but arguably most important—part of their conversation at the restaurant. Afterwards, their topics bounced from the battles that had been fought to the books Blake read and even to critical discussions of the professors' personalities—gossip if Blake was to be completely honest.

She thought that their time at the table was remarkable in the way that it managed to reconnect her life with the lives of her parents. No amount of measured debate or discussion more akin to a debriefing than a conversation would be able to hold as much power as a dialogue devoid of stress or ulterior motive. They had sufficiently caught up with one another. While both parties knew that the years lost to conflicting ideologies could never be reclaimed, they were simply happy that they could see one another again without fear of scorn or general hostility. With the company she had, Blake felt no need to wear her bow when they went out to eat and did not receive scathing looks or even occasional glances as a result. She learned that Sierra was not the separate land she remembered it as, but knew it now to be safe and quaint. It was not yet home to her, but she enjoyed the nostalgic atmosphere nonetheless.

Now, though, it was dark and she was alone. It had been a comfortable quiet that surrounded her and allowed the composition of thoughts and silent reminiscing, but tangential musings could only distract her for so long. Her room was relatively unaltered with the exceptions of a new set of linens placed upon the bed and an immaculateness that countered the notion that this room had gone unoccupied. Her closet and bookshelves were empty except for the items she brought with her, but this absence had been her initial doing. The room was bleak and meant little to her even though it had been her sanctuary for the beginning years of her life. She had exhausted all memories associated with this place and now she stared absent-mindedly at the ceiling, waiting for sleep to overcome her.

Unfortunately, after all the travel and napping she had gone through, tiredness no longer came naturally to the bored Faunus. By now it must have been after midnight; she had resigned to her bed some time between ten and eleven, but she still could not convince her mind to cooperate. Despite having calmed to the idea of returning to this house, she could not warm to the idea of this quiet. While there was little difference between the occupancy of this home and the sisters', she felt a distinct lack of energy—liveliness—in this setting. She knew that this feeling was similar to how she felt during the first night at the sisters' home, but somehow this particular situation made her restless.

She didn't know why she was still awake. She had initially dismissed the idea that she was lonely due to the concept not possibly having any application to her regular personality; however, she eventually entertained the idea and finally accepted that she could be suffering from this pain. Concurrently, she felt that the day had been leading up to an argument or a berating tirade from her parents, but without any such event, she felt that the day had been anticlimactic in a way. She knew that this thought was illogical, but she knew that she wanted some form of closure for this long day. She was torn between this idea and the thought that she was simply lonely for once.

Blake sighed, annoyed with herself and her inability to stop thinking when there wasn't anything left worth thinking about. She could possibly think about the Mistral festival tomorrow, perhaps even plan an itinerary so that she and Yang would be able to go about their day without much worry as to where they would go next. The thought was amusing for a few seconds until she realized that she had forgotten the layout of the town and the events associated with the other kingdom's holiday. Again, she sighed, having nothing better to do than stare at the ceiling. At times like this, inherent night vision was unfortunate when all she wanted was calming darkness.

A few minutes would pass by, feeling like strenuous hours to the Faunus, until her ears next perked to a distant noise. She did not know what to think about the sound. If it proved to be nothing, then it would only serve to mock her static state. Yet there was always the possibility of the noise being something that could distract her and give her topics to think about for a moment. She focused on the noise and realized that the quick, successive clicks of a door opening were followed by light padding of feet across the wooden floor of the house. She began to hope that the steps were nearing her room, but she soon doubted the thought due to the early hour. However, what she saw when the door creaked slowly open made her smile brightly and allowed her restless mind reprieve.

"Blake?" Yang whispered into the room. "Blake, are you up?"

She was peeking around the corner as though the action of waking her partner was forbidden or unwanted. Blake grinned at this, seeing the excited yet hesitant look in the dark of the night. "Yeah," she whispered back. This was all the invitation the blonde needed to enter the room before gingerly closing the door as not to make a detectable noise. "You couldn't sleep either?"

"Yeah, pretty much." Yang then turned towards the rest of the room before saying, "Whoa. Oh God, it's dark." Blake couldn't help but giggle at this reaction to her room; from where she lay, she could see Yang's eyes widen in surprise and as a futile attempt at bettering her sight. Blake had purposefully kept the room dark so that her night vision would dim with the lack of ambient light, but because Yang lacked her trait, she propped herself up on her elbows before pulling aside a curtain and letting moonlight stream through her window. "Well that's better. Thanks!"

When she turned to look back at her partner, Blake's breath caught in her throat at the sight she was met with. In the light of the moon, Yang was quite literally glowing, creating a stunning image of the girl Blake loved that was only enhanced by the beaming smile and vivacious, lilac orbs that shined in the dark. She was beautiful, Blake thought—even in the earliest hours of the morning after a day of travel and stress and confusion, Yang was still able to inspire awe and take her breath away. It was a warm and comforting sight that let Blake know that she was by no means alone any longer. When she saw Yang walk slowly forward towards her, using as much discretion in noise as possible, her heart was set aflutter. She took a needed, shallow breath and knew that this was her life now and it was magnificent.

Yang took a seat on the corner of Blake's bed before swinging her legs and turning her body so that she could face the Faunus in a cross-legged position. She smirked and asked, "So, what's up?"

Blake laughed as she lay back down. "Did you seriously walk into my room in the middle of the night so you could ask me 'What's up?'"

"What? No!" Now it was Yang's turn to laugh. "Is it a crime if I just want to see my girlfriend again?"

Hearing her given title, Blake felt the same prideful warmth she had come to enjoy over this past week flow through her. "Yang, I'm trying to sleep. If you just wanted to see me again, you could have simply told me."

Yang scoffed. "You're not trying to get to sleep. You might be tired, but if I'm not sleepy, you're _definitely_ not sleepy." She grinned toothily. "So we're gonna talk about something. I don't care what we talk about, let's just talk."

Blake rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Yang, I've been trying to think of something to get my mind off things for nearly an hour. I'm the wrong person to ask for conversation topics at the moment."

"Fine," Yang sighed playfully. "I have to do everything, don't I?" Blake was about to ask what it was she was talking about but was unable to do so when Yang moved. She escaped her sitting position and slid up the bed so that she was able to lay down in the empty space next to Blake. As Yang rolled onto her side so she could face her partner, Blake backed away so the blonde would have enough room to lie down comfortably. The Faunus turned onto her side as well so she could gaze back into the warm look she was being given. "So," Yang began, "if you don't have anything to talk about, why don't I pick?" She looked as though she was taking a moment to think about her chosen topic, but Blake was almost certain she knew what she wanted to talk about already. "How about your mom? What's up with her and being a Faunus but not looking like one?"

Blake's brows raised in surprise. "Is that all you came in here to ask me about?"

"Oh, no. You aren't that lucky," Yang laughed. "No, you told me you'd tell me later and when we had the time. Now's as good a time as any, right?"

Blake sighed. "Do you really want to know? We could always talk about something else."

"Why do you think I asked?"

She furrowed her brows. "I promise that it's not going to be as interesting as you think it's going to be."

"Yeah, okay, whatever. Come on! Just get on with it! You're putting me to sleep with all this waiting you're making me do."

"Fine," Blake sighed as she rolled back onto her back so that she could look at the ceiling again. She figured that because she had pressed Yang to answer questions about her sister's relationship earlier, this was only fair. Blake took a moment to organize the story that she was to tell before beginning. "My mom is biologically a Faunus, but you've seen that she lacks any defining Faunus traits." She could see Yang nod out of the corner of her eye. "Yang, how much do you know about genetics?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Uh…I used to know some stuff about it, but I kinda forgot a lot of it. Why? Do I need to know it for this story?"

Blake shook her head. "No, I just wanted to know so I could figure out how much I need to explain. Anyway, we—both human and Faunus—are determined in our appearances by a number of genetic traits that are either dominant or recessive. For Faunus, we have a few possible traits that determine what type of animal feature we have. In most instances, a Faunus has only one such trait. For example, I have my ears, Sun has his tail, and my dad has his eyes." Yang yawned, prompting Blake to look at her critically. "You asked me to answer your question and I warned you that the explanation wouldn't be interesting. Don't blame me if you find the answer boring." As Yang rolled her eyes, Blake returned her gaze upwards. "As I was saying, these traits are passed down by our parents' genes. The observable Faunus features are not necessarily determined by those the parents have, they simply depend on the trait that allows these features to form to be dominant. This happens nearly every time a Faunus has a child with another Faunus.

"However, in my mother's case, her trait was recessive. The reason for this is because my grandmother was a Faunus while my grandfather was a human. Biologically speaking, she is a Faunus—she has night vision and was able to pass down the dominant trait to me—but she has the external appearance of a human because of the recessive gene."

"Is that a bad thing?" Yang asked.

"Not anymore, no, but when she was younger, it was." Blake took a breath before turning on her side so that she could face her partner again. She needed to see that the blonde was genuinely concerned and not simply curious in a detached, subversive way. Fortunately, she was never one to gain at another's expense and her concerned look ensured this belief. Blake sighed. "Yang, you are aware of how some humans view the Faunus and how the White Fang views humanity, correct?" She received a nod in reply. "Well, it's gotten a lot better from how it used to be when my mom was growing up. Faunus immediately knew who she was and rejected her because of her human appearance and heritage while humans eventually found out and pushed her away because of her Faunus biology. Her recessive trait made her an outsider to both sides of the conflict, but because tensions between the races have eased over the years and because she found my dad, she's been able to live a normal life."

Yang hummed in what sounded to be contemplation. "And that's why she doesn't seem super supportive of us going out, right?"

"Yeah," Blake sighed. "Something like that."

Yang sighed as well before rolling onto her back and giving Blake the impression that she intended on staying in the position she currently held. "Sorry about bringing that up. I mean, it was interesting to hear about, but I did not expect the story to be that…dark. I liked the dolphin idea. At least that didn't make me feel like an idiot for bringing it up."

"It's all right, Yang. Honestly, it would probably be better to hear it from me now than have the thought eating away at you while we're here."

"Yeah," the blonde sighed. Blake thought the discussion would have ended there, but she was surprised by Yang's continuance. "I mean, I get where she's coming from when she says we shouldn't be dating. I'm sorry to hear what happened to her, but that's not gonna stop us, right?" This piqued Blake's attention, prompting her to turn onto her side again to watch the girl as she spoke. "Besides the White Fang, who could really cause trouble for me?"

"Other Faunus rights activists," Blake replied even though she felt the question had been rhetorical in the first place.

"What are they going to do, yell at me? Call me a few names? That's nothing. I meant who besides the White Fang would actually attack and threaten my life? I don't think there will be anyone like that. And I can handle the White Fang; I think I've proved that already." Even though Blake felt Yang hadn't truly felt the pain of discrimination and years of consistent hate, she wouldn't argue—if anybody could live up to the promise she gave, it would be her. "And who's going to hurt you while I'm around?"

Blake had to take time to reason an answer for this. She could handle most human insults sent her way and for those she couldn't, Yang had proven more than able to lessen the blow and frighten the aggressor. The White Fang would be a consistent problem, but that had more to do with her prior choices than her current relationship. She couldn't think of any force that would be able to hurt her specifically because of her relationship. "Exactly," Yang continued. "Nobody's going to mess with you while I'm around, so why should we worry about this relationship? Is it about what other people think? If that's it, then I'm sorry but your mom is wrong. As long as you've got my back and I've got yours, I don't think there's anything anyone can do to us."

Had Yang proven her mother wrong? The thoughts were optimistic and idealistic, but Blake could find nothing to refute the claims. Yang had proven herself capable before and there was no reason to think she couldn't continue her trend of protecting Blake. Then again, Blake had found that proving her mother wrong was an event that seldom occurred. Perhaps there were times concerning matters of infinitesimal importance where she was contradicted, but there was yet to be an instance where she had been proven wrong on a matter with the scope of this argument. Her mother was being cautionary while Yang seemed to be simply correct. Blake sighed. It was too late to be taking sides in a conflict that occurred only within her mind.

Seconds ticked away and neither girl seemed willing to move nor discuss any further. Blake had found the tiredness that she had been seeking and now wanted to sleep, but at the same time, she knew Yang needed to be entertained to an extent. Even though the girl was yawning, Yang didn't seem inclined to leave her spot on the bed. For this reason, Blake had to ask, "Yang, do you need me to walk you back to your room?"

Her response was a sheepish laugh. "Actually, do you think I could bunk with you tonight? My room's a little too quiet. I don't know, I just can't sleep without knowing someone's there. I mean, it's just weird not being able to hear anyone else in my room. I kinda need that noise to get to sleep."

Instinctually, Blake was supportive of the idea the moment it was mentioned. However, she knew that this tired state doubtlessly suffered from minor delirium, forcing her to give the situation thought before making a decision. "You know that if my parents realize you're sleeping here—"

"Really?" Yang cut her off. "Do you really think they are going to think that way about us? We aren't doing anything wrong, just sharing a bed. If I thought I was going to get kicked out for something, I wouldn't do it. I'm pretty sure they'd be fine with this as long as we're not doing anything that would make them mad."

Blake was too tired for this. She wanted Yang to stay so she could fill the void in the bed beside her and so that she would be provided with sleep-inducing warmth. For this hour, the rationale that Yang gave was more than appeasing to Blake's weary state. "Fine," she breathed before watching Yang waste no time in bringing herself under the covers.

Yang gave Blake a sunny, victorious smile before the Faunus felt a hand crawl across her side and down to her lower back. She barely had time to think of the intent behind the action before she was quickly pulled closer to the blonde. She was startled but not necessarily aggravated by the action. The distance between the two now amounted to scant inches as Blake was faced with the sight of Yang's collarbone and tank top. She felt the weight of the blonde's head rest upon her own and knew instantly that Yang's original intent for entering the room had not been conversation. Blake wrapped her arms around her girlfriend's back and nestled into her chest as she found the soothing sound of a heartbeat. Noticing that their legs were slowly entwining with each other, Blake became aware of the similarity between this current position and the position they found themselves in when the storm raged a week prior. This time, however, the "snuggling" and "cuddling" (she still did not feel comfortable with using the words) were less necessary actions than actions of convenience.

"I have a feeling tomorrow's gonna be great. I just know it." Blake nodded in agreement into the chest the voice came from. Before, she had been anxious about the events of today and the days yet to come, but Yang's excitement was contagious and it gave the more reserved of the two the energy she needed to anticipate the festival and the inevitable crowd. She felt a hand come up and brush aside her bangs before she felt Yang's lips press against her forehead. The sweetly warm feeling of the connection they shared was magical to the tired Faunus—it rejuvenated her and made her feel even more tired at the same time. She could not control the loving smile that pulled at the corners of her own lips. "Goodnight, Blake. Sweet dreams."

The distance Yang had whispered her wishes to the Faunus' ears was so close and intimate that the recipient could not help but sigh contentedly. She pulled herself closer to the warm form beside her as she allowed her eyelids to sag and subsequently close. She took in the signature scent and listened to the slowing heartbeat that would remind her throughout the night that she was no longer alone—no longer a stray. She allowed the pull of sleep to wash over her and dull the remaining thoughts and sensations that afflicted her. All of her attention would remain on that wonderful girl she clung onto as she quickly fell asleep. Before she succumbed, she whispered back, "Goodnight, Yang." I love you.

* * *

I hope that the introduction of Blake's parents was acceptable. My goal in writing this chapter was to give them their own distinct personalities with ties to Blake and the story while not being excessively quirky in a way that makes the story all about them. I have read too many fan fictions where the author introduces his or her original characters and immediately makes the story center around their existence in one way or another. The parents are important to this story but they will not appear for long. I hope that they were written well enough so that you can have an idea of who they are and what they stand for while not feeling as though they are taking precedence over the story. If they do happen to appear in this light, I can assure you that Blake and Yang's relationship will continue to be the primary focus of this story.

The relationship between Ruby and Weiss, however, will not be shown in the next few chapters due to Blake's distance from them. This does not mean that their relationship is not progressing. After Weiss' admission and subsequent acceptance of her emotions in the last chapter, it would be absurd for her not to make an effort towards achieving her goals. While Blake and Yang are away on their trip, Ruby and Weiss will hardly be stagnant. By the time they are all reunited, there will be progress. To avoid spoiling anything, I cannot say what will be done, but know that while the White Rose pairing will not be present in the next few chapters, the relationship will advance.

If anyone is trying to find the meaning behind the dream in the center section of the chapter, I promise that you will not be able to find all the answers in this chapter or the chapters prior. Much of what was described is related to what has occurred (as most dreams do) but at the same time there is a great deal pertaining to what is to come. This described section acts as both a premonition and a dream of past events. I will refute one potential speculation, however. If you believe that the dream meant that Yang is simply content with Blake and will become sad for some reason before becoming exuberant later on, I am sorry, but that is not what the dream is foreshadowing. Again, for the sake of reducing spoilers, this is all I can say on the matter.

Thank you all for reading. At some point between the previous chapter's posting and this chapter's posting, _Valence_'s follower count totaled over one-hundred. I honestly never imagined this story reaching such a milestone. Thank you. Because of this, I wanted to do something other than write "thank you" repeatedly and I came up with an idea that I believe will not go over well at all but just might have some salvageable quality to it. My idea is to host a live stream this Friday (August 1) at 7:00 p.m. CDT (GMT -5). This stream would include a very early preview of the next chapter (This would not contain spoilers.) and would glean insight into my boring writing process. Even though I expect the viewer count to be at most only one or two, I think it could be fun nonetheless. However, I must warn you that this stream may shatter whatever expectations you might have of me as a person. Attend at your own risk.

A link to the site where I will hold the live stream can be found near the top of my Fanfiction profile and any notifications that need to be sent out pertaining to the stream can be found on my Tumblr (also found in my profile). Again, thank you for reading. This has been an incredible experience thus far.

Stay safe and stay tuned.


	11. Chapter 11: Independence

Welcome back and thank you for reading. I would like to keep this initial author's note brief so to keep the displayed word count down to an extent and so that you can get to the chapter sooner. I would like to say that in the author's note at the end of this chapter, there are a few announcements that may interest some of you. The announcements are not related to any sort of hiatus or change in scheduling or anything else negative, so don't worry about that. Honestly, I'm trying to keep this author's note positive so that you may get in the right mood for this particular chapter.

I hope that chapter eleven of _Valence_ exceeds your expectations.

* * *

Chapter 11: Independence

July 3

It has been far too long since I last did this. Even writing that last sentence proves my atrophy. To my future self, please disregard this paragraph as it only serves to reacquaint me with writing in a way that lacks the tedium of structural note taking and rigidity of informative styles. I will admit that the extension of this paragraph is also meant to allow me the opportunity to reinforce and restructure my handwriting. Looking back on the other entries, I find that the relaxed mood of the time directly affected the writing quality and appearance despite the subject matter covered. I need—I must reclaim the skills I have lost because it would only be just for the topic I am to discuss.

Yang.

Yang. Yang. Yang.

Why is it that when I think of your name—let alone write it—I get this feeling? I cannot begin to describe what it feels like (A warm shiver? A soothing flutter?) but I know that it feels right. It is incredible and haunting and mystifying and humbling—it builds and it breaks and yet I never get tired of the sensation and will actively seek it by thinking your name just one more time. You broke me, Yang. You broke me from the hex of the maddening world that threatens our sanctity. And I don't care that you broke me because what you broke built itself back stronger than it has ever been before. Weiss was wrong, Yang; I haven't lost my edge. Instead, it has been sharpened and honed to such a razor that it can hardly be seen and yet it would be foolish to claim that it does not exist. It's there, Yang. As you protect me, I will protect you with strength given to me by this wonderful feeling you supply.

Yang Xiao Long.

Had I a sufficient eraser, the previous paragraphs would not exist. However, because I lack such a tool and because the points made and alluded to still hold some validity to them, they must stay. The aforementioned points (emotions, sensations, etc.) are the reasons why I am writing again. I need to clear my mind and organize my thoughts. Perhaps with this entry I can figure something out.

During this past year, I have attended Beacon Academy with the intent of learning and training towards becoming a huntress and have disengaged professionally, ideologically, and emotionally from the White Fang in its current state. I am not ignoring the vast gap in both time and reason between this entry and the last; instead I am choosing to elaborate at a later date. This entry is to be dedicated solely to one peculiar anomaly I have become enamored with in this past year. My combat partner for the extent of my attendance of the Academy, Yang Xiao Long, is now my girlfriend. It is still strange to think about but makes sense in this present moment. I will refrain from being comprehensive in my retelling of our history so to preserve pages—I find that these moments we have shared are ingrained in my memory and it is doubtful they will ever leave—and will describe the fundamental outline and causes that have led to this effect. To my future self, I am aware of the suddenness of our history, but it is a rich, real history despite the time frame.

Security—or a lack of hostility—was something I doubted could be found after leaving the White Fang but was surprised to learn that the student body of the Academy was not only welcoming but accepting. It was odd, the school. After my experiences within the organization, I believed that a constant competitive atmosphere would exist everywhere and would dominate the school's population. Not only did they prove to be accepting and encouraging, they were among the first people I could sincerely call "friends" without meaning acquaintances who became obligatory allies whenever the situation descended into conflict. Yang was the first of these friends—she was my best friend. Actually, it is to say that she still is my best friend but at the same time she is much more.

During the school year, this friendship amounted to rather frequent jokes (mostly from Yang, but I occasionally made attempts), integrated combat tactics, thorough note-taking habits (what Yang missed in class, I was able to supplement), a constant feeling of relaxation and happiness, and eventually an invitation. This invitation was Yang's offer near the end of the year to spend the summer with her and Ruby in Vale. At the time, I thought nothing more of the offer than a chance to spend time with my newfound friends. Even though it had occurred to me that the other students outside of my team were returning to their homes and parents, this information seemed to spur my decision towards accepting Yang's then outstretched hand rather than declining. I had no knowledge of what had become of my parents—whether or not they cared for me, remembered me, or even if they were alive—but I expected the worst. I accepted Yang's offer without much deliberation and it turned out to be perhaps the greatest decision of my life.

Towards the latter months of my first year at Beacon, I began to see Yang in a light that was far more personal than mere friendship. I will spare this entry the descriptions of how and why these sentiments came into existence because this is not about the origin of our relationship. Rather, this entry is dedicated to the results of what happened on the morning of our second day of summer break. On that second day—not 24 hours after we left the school—I asked Yang and she said "Yes." Less than two weeks after that moment, I feel as though I am in love with her. This sensation is the reason why I feel I must write. This closeness is not natural to me and is admittedly very confusing.

Who is Yang to me?

This is a surprisingly difficult question to answer. My immediate reaction is to respond with either girlfriend or partner but I know that such simple words will not justly apply to these emotions. Perhaps I should begin by saying what comes to mind. It seems as though anything else proves too analytical while such a simple, natural thought process yields the most telling results.

Yang—as I wrote before, the name sends a warming chill down my spine—is this wonderful force in my life that has shown me nothing but kindness. In these past two weeks, she has changed my life in so many ways that I never thought possible for me. It seems as though I'm blindly praising (Idolizing?) her in my writing, but that is not my intent. I would like to thank her but I must stay objective about this. She has altered my personality positively—augment would have been a better word—and it would be wrong to look over this fact. I now prefer company over solace; small company, numbering one to three at most, but company nonetheless. I have found that my primary leisure activity has become being near Yang rather than reading. I want to speak again and I feel that I will be able to without worrying about political or personal repercussions. At a very basic level, I am different after the events of last year, but these two weeks have changed the way I interact with others to such a degree I have never before experienced. And it was all because of Yang.

So who is she to me, then? Even with a few minutes of thought, I still have not come up with an answer. However, without the looming presence of Beacon, I have had more than a few minutes to think and now I know how I feel for her. I am proud to be with Yang. Every second I am with her is new and fresh and this makes life exhilarating. She is so different from me and yet very much the same. Our goals, ideals, and morals are fairly aligned. I doubt she could ever care about the state of Faunus the way I do, but that is to be expected. She has priorities I could never relate to with her sister and absence of parents. We both understand the harshness of the world, albeit in different ways and for different reasons. What separates us, however, is how we deal with that harshness. Looking back at those older entries, I know that I can be grim and, at times, pessimistic. Yang is optimistic and counters reality with humor—this does not mean she ignores the world; she merely softens the impact for those around her. The optimism helps and the humor makes even a grim situation a little bit lighter. Would it be narcissistic to say that I act as a balance for her too? Perhaps it would be a tad novel to say that my dark, reserved disposition harmonizes with her sunny, idealistic nature? Am I the Yin to her Yang?

She really has gotten to me. If the second paragraph of this entry inspired want of a better eraser, then that joke—if it can be called that—inspires a need for a new eraser.

This transition (Degradation? Decline? Degeneration? There are so many words to describe the effect of her infectious sense of humor.) was inevitable and possibly for the best. I find that I am happier than I used to be and not by a marginal percentage. Whenever I look in a mirror, I am smiling and I cannot compose myself. I feel lucky despite the deliberateness in choice of Yang as my partner. I love her—I am sure of that. "Love" was the conclusion I came to within five days. It has been seven days since then and I still cannot seem to grasp the scope of this emotion. I know it exists—it is too strong to go unnoticed and unclassified—but how it managed to develop in such a short period of time is admittedly confusing to me. It is not to say that my love for her is shallow or trite in any way—rather, it is remarkable how quickly she inspired such emotion on my part. Before she came into my life, I was certain there would be no fairy tale ending for me. I still don't believe everything will work in my—our—favor, but perhaps the "happily ever after" may come after all.

I see Yang as my happily ever after. She is who I will fight for and who will fight for me—not because she is obliged to be my ally but because she cares for me as I do her. She is my partner, my girlfriend, my light in the darkness. I love her. Yang Xiao Long.

Yang, if you realize the purpose of this book and find this entry, know that I will not be mad at you. I admit, I will probably be a little upset at the invasion of privacy, but this is information you have a right to see. I'm sorry if the entries before shocked you—they still shock me too. I originally wrote this for myself but you have given me reason to write for us. I may not know who you are in every regard but I look forward to finding out. Yang, if you are reading this, I want you to know that everything I said in these past few pages is true (Even the part about your humor corrupting me. I may never forgive you for that.). At the same time, if you're reading this, then it must be apparent that I am a coward and have pretty much forced you to search for any indication of affection from me. If that is the case, then I am sorry.

I love you, Yang. I may lack the courage to say it aloud, but I love you nonetheless. Perhaps when I acquire that courage, I can say it to you and you would know. I love you, Yang Xiao Long, whether you read this or not.

* * *

Blake stared at the words, surprised yet skeptical at what she had written—at how much she had written. She tapped the end of her pencil where an eraser had once been against the final page as she looked at her inaudible confession. The thoughts and sentiments were true but the fervor in which she wrote was disconcerting. It felt as though only minutes had passed since she first retrieved her journal and now she had far more pages filled than she had intended. She wanted to flip back through to count exactly how many there were, but her eyes were resolutely trained on that final paragraph. She had intended this entry to simply be her retelling of events and an evaluation of what she was feeling, but her emotions seemed to override her ability to write. However, she could find neither reason nor inclination to refute anything written. Everything here was true enough to make her blush, but she felt that the action of tapping her pencil against the journal while looking intently at the final paragraph would be enough to cover up this reaction.

Within the sanctuary of her room—the room she had been given as a child—Blake sat atop her bed, struggling with limited time and alien emotions. She felt as though she needed to write more but could not bring herself to continue. Despite how long this entry had become, she felt as though it was relatively succinct. She had answered her question and had come to a conclusion that she had arrived at multiple times before and yet she felt as though there was more to say. Of course, there would always be more to elaborate upon as her feelings for the blonde could not amount to mere pages. This amount would do fine, she thought before flipping back to the entry's first page with the intent of proofreading despite her lack of eraser. However, when her ears perked at a noise on the other side of her door, she suddenly became panicked.

She watched the handle turn before Yang entered. Before could be seen, Blake closed her journal so that the leather cover with the dead language would be displayed. In her haste, she had unfortunately closed the book on her pencil, showing what she believed to be an obvious gap that would tell Yang what she had been doing. She could only hope her perceptive partner would not see it.

"So," Yang began, tugging at one of her gloves so that it would fit correctly, "are you about ready to go?"

Blake had to compose herself. It took a great deal of effort to even her features and control the blush that still lingered, but eventually her practiced calm became apparent and hid any and all signs of panic or embarrassment. She wanted Yang to know what she had written but not yet—it was too soon. At the same time, she had to tame the eager smile that came from seeing her partner. They hadn't been caught last night and Yang had even been there when Blake woke up, albeit asleep but there nonetheless. She wanted to smile at the memory of the position they had woken up in. During the night, Yang had shifted so that she could nuzzle possessively underneath Blake's chin, resulting in a hold that was opposite the one they had fallen asleep in. When the Faunus roused from her slumber, she was met with a sight of untamed, golden hair and an indomitable grip that she could not escape from. Despite the happiness brought about by this memory, Blake needed to stay composed so that her journal would stay unnoticed.

"I believe so," Blake calmly replied as she slid the book off of her lap and onto the bed. She hoped that her saying this while moving the journal out of sight would direct Yang's attention more towards her than anything else. This seemed to work as the blonde smiled widely. Blake imagined that the next thing said would be Yang encouraging her to get moving, but precautions needed to be taken first. "Wait," she purposefully made a show of looking at Yang's arm, "shouldn't you bring Ember Celica?" She felt that because Yang's weapons were inconspicuous enough in their collapsed state, it would be ideal for her to bring them. Blake did not expect any trouble today, but this preparedness had been instilled and seemed logical to her now.

Yang shrugged. "Yeah, sure. What about you? Aren't you bringing yours?"

Blake shook her head. "I can't. I don't know how my parents would react to me carrying a gun around, much less Gambol Shroud."

"Fair enough." Again she shrugged before sending Blake her best attempt at a winning smile. "So, what are you reading?"

"Nothing." She answered quickly and automatically. Yang had apparently caught on to her attempt at hiding the book. Unfortunately, Blake believed that because the concealment was observed, her reaction had also been perceived as panicked and forced. Her girlfriend's expression did not change but surely she must have been aware of the lie she had been told. For this reason, Blake needed to move the conversation along and away from herself. "Go get your weapons. I'll be out in a moment."

The blonde rolled her eyes. "Fine, fine. I'll pry some other time." She turned to the door so that she would hopefully leave and allow Blake the opportunity to hide her journal. "Besides, I'm not in the mood to read anything right now. Maybe later." Blake sent her a defensive glare which evoked a laugh on Yang's part. "Simmer down, Belladonna." She winked as she pulled the door open. "I don't care what you were writing anyways. It's none of my business." At this, she exited and closed the door behind her.

Blake reclined into a supine position before sighing aloud. Yang had realized the purpose of her book. Now it was only a matter of time until she would find and read it. Fortunately, she did not seem interested in it at the moment as the events of today seemed to be exciting her much more. This sigh was intended to release the panic that had overcome her mind and to show general gratitude that their interaction had passed without incident. Normally, she enjoyed Yang's company and her sudden intrusions, but the timing of this particular instance proved somewhat irksome. However, she couldn't be mad at Yang for too long; Blake thought that without her partner's entrance, she would still be proofreading. She took a breath before sitting back up and retrieving her book.

Just as Blake was preparing to conceal her journal, her door opened once again and Yang's head peeked through. "I'm sorry; what I said came out wrong." Blake raised an eyebrow, wondering why she was not preparing to leave. "I didn't mean that I don't care about what you're writing—I do! It's just that I was in a rush and didn't think about what I was saying and I'm sorry if it hurt your feelings. I promise I won't read your diary or anything, Blake. I—"

"Yang?" Blake cut her off.

"Yes, dear?"

She had to resist the urge to roll her eyes at the blatantly appeasing name she had been given. "Weapons," she said simply.

Yang's apologetic demeanor vanished with a short laugh and a bright grin. "Roger that." She then closed the door, leaving Blake alone and with a bemused smile. She no longer had any reason to be annoyed at Yang. Her partner's appearance and subsequent reappearance evoked the same feeling she had been compelled to write about. Even without Yang's presence, the smile still lingered and even grew to a small, quiet laugh that she could not suppress.

The young Faunus retrieved her book, removed the pencil caught between the pages, and went to her closet. Inside was her suitcase—the location she believed would best hide her journal from the inevitable search of her partner. However, with the opening of the case, concealment lost its priority to the sight she was met with. The thin, black box that had been purchased a week prior rested unobtrusively against one side of the case. Blake haphazardly placed the book atop everything else before gingerly collecting the gift. With Yang out of her room, she was able to check on the necklace and see that it still retained its simple, stunning beauty. Yang would like it, but now was not the right time to give it to her. Blake smiled as she closed the box and tucked it back into its inconspicuous space. She had brought it with her just in case there was the opportunity to brighten Yang's day. However, it seemed as though Yang was already fairly jubilant and such a present given today would not have as great an effect as it could.

Blake closed her case and rose. She did not know why she had been unenthused before since she had enjoyed the festivities in her early life. Today would be fun, she thought, if Yang's enthusiasm was any measure to go by. The energy that she had been quite literally radiating would undoubtedly carry through the day and keep Blake comparatively upbeat as well. Thinking about Yang and how she would enjoy the festival made the young Faunus smile. Perhaps she could relax and simply enjoy today as well. The past few days had been rather stressful and she could find no outlet for her frustrations before she left.

She decided to leave her bow for the day. She had decided earlier in this summer that she would go without the fabric but had yet to follow through with the intention. Perhaps today would be the day she could start her break from her bow—she had grown up in this town without it and had rarely faced discrimination. She nodded to herself before making her way to the door. Yang was most likely waiting for her by this point. She exited her room, excited for the day ahead and for the time she would spend with Yang.

Across the hall, her partner's door was closed. Blake could only assume that Yang had already made her way downstairs as she would have left her door open if she was still preparing her gauntlets. There was the possibility that the blonde had listened to what Blake said about her parent's possible reaction to their weapons and closed the door out of caution, but she believed that Yang was too enthused at the moment to care about any potential repercussions. For this reason, she moved to the stairs and quickly descended them. As she did, she could hear her father's hearty chuckle followed by Yang's high pitch. Hearing these allowed her worries to disappear entirely.

When she arrived at the base of the stairwell, Blake was finally able to see the sources of conversation and found her parents and girlfriend sitting around the living room's coffee table. As though nothing was wrong with the action, Yang wore her gauntlets in their retracted state proudly, making them seem more like large, golden bracelets than imposing guns. Her parents seemed arguably less dangerous in clothes that made it apparent that they saw the day as special as well. Her father, in a button-up shirt that looked perhaps too professional than he should be wearing, spun his keys around his finger by their ring as he spoke to Yang. The girl in question gave Blake a quick smile before returning to the conversation that she had apparently involved herself in. "And if you two want to head over to the North Wind Park, the town's band will be playing, I think, from around three or four until the fireworks start—but you'll be back here before that; we have a better view here than you'd have at the park. I think Blake will want to go to that concert, though. It always was fun to go when she was little even if she kept trying to get closer to the band. I never got why she wanted to do that. We could hear them just fine from where we were." He laughed before looking towards Blake with a wide grin that rivaled Yang's own. "Speaking of Blake, there she is now. Good morning, sweetheart."

Blake reciprocated the smile and nodded thankfully. "Good morning." She then looked to her mother and repeated the phrase before moving to take the seat beside Yang. It was strange to not have her partner's arm drape over her shoulder, but Blake knew that this lack of public affection was for her sake as well as to show some amount of restraint that might impress her parents. The reason why Blake felt her partner was trying to impress her parents was due to the appraising look her mother was giving them and the subtle shudder it caused Yang. Lilian, in a light-grey summer dress worn more deliberately than leisurely, seemed happy and hesitant—individually, frequent occurrences, but together, a true rarity. Perhaps she would be more forgiving of their relationship after rationalizations at length, but until that time she would remain uncertain about the future of the relationship while being at ease with its present. The slight smile she sent Blake told her that disappointment was not one of her current sentiments. She returned her mother's expression.

"So," her father caught his keys and sat back in his chair, "it seems you two are going out on a date. And here I thought the whole reason you came here was to see us again." He chuckled. "But I guess it doesn't matter. It gives your mother and I the chance to go on a little date of our own." He turned his grin Lilian's way. "It'll be just like when we were younger."

She sighed and shook her head. "You speak as though we have romantic intentions interwoven into our plans. We are no longer children, Cole, and I should not have to remind you of this fact."

"And you act like a trip to the grocery store can't be romantic. I, for one, see that as a challenge to make this barbeque the most romantic barbeque you've ever eaten."

"Oh, please."

"Look, you know how they say 'you're only as old as you feel?' Well, I feel about thirty again and you still look as beautiful as you did the day I met you. Why let them have all the fun, huh? Let's make a day out of it, even if we aren't kids anymore. C'mon! It'll be fun, Lil'." She continued to shake her head with the beginnings of a flustered smile.

Yang looked to Blake and rolled her eyes. "Gross," she said quietly, trying her partner's composure and ability to suppress a laugh.

"Hey!" Cole started, turning towards the young couple. "You say that now, but you'll be saying the exact same things in twenty years." He held a confident, playful glare that soon enough faltered to realization. "Wait. You two are younger than we were. Make that thirty years." He then looked to his wife incredulously. "Are we really that old?"

"Cole!" she exclaimed at a volume that was relatively loud for her. "Compose yourself. Let the two have their fun without the burden of your ideas. I could do without them myself, but where would we be if I could not bear them?" He laughed sheepishly. "We are wasting their time as well as our own—it would be wrong to make them wait. They came not only for us but for the festival you invited them to attend. Let them go about their day in peace while we take care of our own matters. Perhaps then would be the better time to consider our errand a date or not."

He sighed. "Okay. I was only joking." He then looked to Blake with a smirk. "Well, since your mother can't seem to contain her excitement, I don't see why we shouldn't go now. I don't want to 'make you wait' any longer than you absolutely have to." Blake smiled as her mother shook her head once more. Her parents were putting on a show for them to assumingly prove that Blake was still welcomed and Yang was accepted. However, the present banter only served to further delay their leave; Blake knew her mother had been aware of this and her father was the chief cause. Yet she would not rush them because they would be acting as their chauffeurs into town. Thankfully, her father stood and began spinning his keys again. "All right, is everybody ready?"

Unsurprisingly, Yang was the first person to stand to this show of enthusiasm. "You bet! Blake? You good to go? I think I got everything I need." With this question came an extended hand which the young Faunus gladly took. She was pulled to her feet but found herself dwarfed by the slightly taller girl and her even taller father. Still, she nodded.

Soon after, her mother stood and glanced at Blake and Yang with but a hint of wariness in her eye before looking to Cole. "It seems we are all prepared. Shall we?"

Again, Blake's father caught his keys. "We shall!" he exclaimed before quickly heading to the foyer. Lilian followed after, leaving the partnership to lag behind with a satisfied if not amused smile quietly gracing her features. The two looked at each other, one with a smile and the other with a raised eyebrow. However, the respective holders of these expressions were quite the opposite of what would normally be expected.

Yang looked quizzically at Blake. "Your dad is worse than me. Why didn't you tell me about this before?"

Blake couldn't contain a short laugh at her girlfriend's observation before she took a gloved hand and pulled. "Come on," she said. "I believe it's time I showed you around for once." With this statement and pull, Yang's incredulity vanished for her signature, sunny smile which brightened Blake's mood in kind. She led her partner outside to her parents and their car, surprisingly excited for what she considered her normal personality to be. She could no longer think or plan or reason, only look forward to the times ahead, both near and far. She did not know if it was the sun clearly above or the star so near to her heart that radiated this incredible warmth. Perhaps it was the temperature, but she knew the effect Yang had on her. She knew her parents had some idea of it as well—both were smart enough to realize something this obvious. Their allowance of their outing proved this to her. Perhaps this, too, was a reason why Blake was smiling in an uncharacteristic, uncontrollable way. This was yet another reason she loved Yang added onto the list of innumerable others realized within these two weeks. She smiled gleefully, widely, and childishly as she clung happily to the warm hand the entire way into town.

* * *

Yang leaned against the sedan and peered inside the passenger window as she spoke. "You said the band starts playing at four, right?" Blake stood on the sidewalk beside her partner and the car, arms crossed as she waited patiently for her girlfriend's attention to be turned her way once again. It is to say that she waited patiently rather than impatiently because she found it easy to delay their day when her partner couldn't stop grinning. Furthermore, it was opportune to listen to this conversation of places and events she had forgotten about. "I just want to make sure. If I don't get our schedule straight, I think that the spirit of Weiss Schnee might haunt us." She looked to Blake and found the both of them smiling. "And I _really_ don't want to think about her today."

While her father snickered, Blake's mother ignored the offhand comment. "Yes, the town's band is scheduled to begin playing around four. The park is located three blocks ahead." She turned her gaze towards the street ahead of them. By the time the couple was looking in the same direction, Lilian continued. "I should warn you that there is the possibility of the concert beginning early—perhaps by an hour at most." She then looked to the two and smiled slightly. "Regardless, I hope you enjoy yourselves today."

Cole leaned over where Lilian sat so that he could be seen through the window. "And make sure you drink lots of water. I don't want either of you getting heat stroke while you're visiting!"

Yang crossed her arms and scoffed. "Oh, please. Who do you take us for? Amateurs? We know how to hydrate and we know our limits. You don't get to be a huntress if you can't pace yourself. I think we're good."

"Okay, then I probably don't need to tell you two to take care of each other out there."

"We'll be fine," Blake sighed. Honestly, she wanted her parents to leave so that she could spend her day with Yang. Their concerns were unwarranted and the fact that they were lingering was taking away from the time that could be spent enjoying the day. But they were her parents and she their guest; she understood their worries as they applied to most every other person who did not strive to become a huntress. She could not bring herself to be angry at their insistence—annoyed perhaps, but not angry.

"No, sir!" Yang chirped, thankfully answering for Blake and compensating for the impatient response. "As long as I've got my eye on Blake, nobody's getting anywhere near her." And Blake would protect her as well if the situation called for action. This seemed to sate the parents' concerns as the mother nodded and the father returned to his seat.

"Well, that's good to hear," he said. "Anyways, we might as well let you two have your day. We'll be right here around seven to pick you up. Have fun and be careful!"

The blonde grinned before returning the sentiment. "You too!" she called as the car began to drive away. The two simply watched the sedan start and stop at the few intersections between them and the horizon until it was lost from their sight. Blake sighed, partly out of relief but as well out of frustration because she had returned to finding her parents irksome when they should not be. They were good people—family—who had welcomed her back as though she had done nothing wrong and had accepted her girlfriend and relationship surprisingly well. Still, their presence did hinder their progress towards enjoying the festival.

That festival that had been on the minds of the girls since the night prior would not have been outwardly apparent from the décor of this relatively small town—it was not necessarily a hidden village, but compared to the city, it was dwarfed. Despite the sizable population of immigrants from the northern kingdom, there were no banners or streamers hung to commemorate the Mistralian victory over the Grimm that occurred centuries ago. Streamers would not have been appropriate as there would be no place to hang them. The buildings in this township seldom rose above three stories and even then such structures were few and far between. Perhaps in the city streamers and banners would be appropriate, but it must be understood that this town was not the city in any regard. It was quiet and secluded, but on this day it was also proven genial by most of its people being out and about, talking and not paying Blake any mind while all moving towards the direction her mother had given. The crowds were not like those in Vale; occasionally, they were slightly intimidating but never were they innumerable or frightening. Whole families, groups of friends, and friends of friends all moved together down sidewalks laid out in front of shops, stores, and the occasional house out of which even more people were emerging to find their eventual destination in the park. There was a singularity of purpose here that could not be seen in Vale. It was calming in a way to the young Faunus.

"Okay," Blake began, attempting to recall as much as she could so an itinerary could be formed, "if I remember correctly, most of the activities for the day will be in the park. There are other events taking place, but they are all located just outside of the park." She looked to where Yang had been, intending to see what she wanted to do, but found that her partner had begun walking away. Furrowing her brows, Blake followed her across the empty street, not wanting to be left alone but frustrated at the same time that she would be abandoned like this. Part of her wanted to believe that this was not abandonment and that Yang had a plan in mind, but the lack of communication only pushed her thoughts towards the negative.

As though nothing was wrong, Yang replied, "Do you want to go to any of those other things or do you just want to go straight to the park?" She didn't bother looking back, instead keeping her eyes trained on a man behind a chrome cart. Thankfully, traffic here did not seem as intense as it was in the city—in fact, Blake had yet to see a car that was not her parents'. This allowed the two to cross from one sidewalk to the other and for Yang to near the cart.

"Yang, what are you doing?" It would be a lie to say that she was entirely annoyed at her partner's actions; to some degree, she was curious, but she wouldn't let this show in her tone. Yang had walked away when she was speaking and deserved reprimand in some form.

She turned a sunny smile Blake's way, evidently unaffected by the annoyed tone Blake had used. "I'm just getting us some cotton candy. Don't worry, I'm still listening, I just wanted to get something for when we're walking around. Since we made the mistake of not really eating yesterday, we should probably be a bit more careful."

Blake wanted to reply with an argument of how choosing to buy something that was entirely comprised of sugar was far from careful eating. However, this response would be condescending and uncouth. Yang was being open and sincere with her now; there was little reason to be mean to her after what she had done this summer. Though, without the bias of gratitude, Yang had walked away while Blake was speaking and was now buying something for the Faunus that was decidedly unnecessary. Blake sighed. "I'm fine. You don't need to buy me anything."

"Yeah, sure. You say that now." They came to a stop before the cart just as the man was waving good-bye to a mother and daughter. Blake's attention unwittingly shifted from her girlfriend to the elated smile of the little girl and the proud grin of the mother holding her hand, causing a deep-seated sadness to claw at her annoyed demeanor. Fortunately, hearing Yang's order of two sticks of cotton candy brought her attention back to the present before any further damage could have been taken.

Blake kept her unamused glare even. "At the very least, you could have told me about what you were doing first."

Yang shrugged. "Yeah, I probably should have. I thought that I wasn't going too far away and that you would follow anyways, but I probably should have told you first." In Blake's mind, this sufficed for an apology and she was ready to forgive her partner. However, Yang continued. "But you seemed like you really wanted to go to the park. If I know you—and I'd like to think I do—then you probably wouldn't have let me stop to get something on the way."

That wasn't true, Blake thought. She had only skipped breakfast yesterday so that they would make their flight—a decision that proved correct with the amount of time they had. She knew that decision had proven detrimental by the end of the day, but it was a choice she had to make at the time and in no way reflected the patient personality that she believed she had. She would admit that she wanted to head to the event at the earliest possible time, but this did not mean she would keep Yang from buying something for herself. She couldn't find anything to say in response, wanting to be neither argumentative nor immediately forgiving. The man behind the cart drew the blonde's attention away before handing her two cones of the unwanted sugar. They both smiled while Blake frowned. Yang thanked him before turning her expression to the Faunus. The smile lessened to a point where she nearly looked apologetic. "I'm sorry, Blake," she said before extending one of the cones out to her. "I made a mistake by walking off and calling you impatient. I'm sorry." Her hopeful grin helped express her sincerity and nearly caused Blake to relent. But it was only because of the extended peace offering held between them that she was won over.

Blake sighed and took the cone, prompting her partner's grin to widen. "It's all right. I should be apologizing, not you." This made Yang's look change from ecstatic to curious. Blake sighed again as she looked down into the fluff of the gift that began to look more and more desirable. "I don't know what it is, but I'm not thinking correctly. Perhaps it's the stress of travel or my fear of rejection by my parents, but this stress has been making it difficult to think clearly. I'm sorry if I've been sporadic in my emotions."

"Don't worry about it." Blake looked up to meet her partner's gaze and found her sporting a smirk that was both disarming and encouraging. This look—this loving look, she thought—influenced a small smile to grace her own features. "I can't say I completely understand what you're going through, but I know that everybody has their moments of…well, I don't want to say 'weakness' because you and I are incredible in every way imaginable," Blake couldn't suppress a quiet laugh, "_but_ we do have our moments. How could we not, being this awesome all the time?" The young Faunus closed her eyes and shook her head. In this state, she could only feel her free hand being pulled into Yang's. She looked once more to her girlfriend and found her glittering, honest, lilac eyes confident and reassuring. "Don't worry about it, Blake. I imagine you're having a rough time and I'm just glad that you were only annoyed. Let's forget about all this and try to have some fun today. You can take point. I'm happy to go wherever you want to go."

Even to this day, Yang proved to be an anomaly. Whenever Blake thought the blonde's intentions were shallow or single-minded, she always managed to turn the situation in her favor and into an opportunity for impressing speech and heartfelt sincerity. It was brilliant and managed to turn Blake's mood around for the better every time. Before this summer, the Faunus had thought her disposition was unchangeable for the most part, but Yang quickly subverted that idea. She loved that smirk and she loved that Yang was able to better any of her faults that may arise. She hoped that she could return the favor and make her partner's life as enjoyable as her own was now. Currently, however, all she could say was "Thank you." This gratitude was given for many reasons—for helping her calm down, for this entire summer, for the cotton candy—but mostly for Yang herself as strange as that was to Blake. The smile and squeeze of her hand she received conveyed that this gratitude had been conveyed yet made her want to continue. Fortunately, Yang spoke.

"Blake," she laughed, "I said don't worry about it. Now come on," she pulled her partner forward, "we've got a festival for a day I know nothing about to go to." Blake allowed herself to laugh as well as she was pushed ahead, moved to lead her partner through the day and show her around like Yang had with Vale. Soon enough, they were walking side-by-side and hand-in-hand down the promenade with the flow of foot traffic.

Blake looked over at her partner and saw her tearing away at the flossy material, free of inhibition or shame that normally spawns from others seeing a lack of lack of manners that would appall Weiss and set a bad example for Ruby. She didn't know if it was her partner's enthusiasm or if it was her own intent to not squander her cone, but the couple's hands unlatched so that the individuals could tend to their own matters. Yang carried on with her actions while Blake carefully picked away at the material as she minded the path before them. She vaguely remembered what these buildings were—their names, purposes, and so on—but could not glean anything more than sporadic and unconnected memories. There were a few places that were obvious in their design and thusly brought back some happy visions. Not too far back, they had passed an old ice cream shop that she remembered her father taking her into far too many times to count. She remembered having memorized the owner's name as well as the cast of characters that cycled in and out of employment there. Sadly, she had forgotten their names after all this time. To some part of Blake, this was still her home, but that part of her was so repressed and revised that she felt that it hardly represented who she was or who she wanted to be anymore. She shook her head and resumed pulling away the candy, strand by strand.

Her mother had stated that they would have to walk three blocks to reach the park. The reason why they had not been dropped off closer—and the reason why there were hardly any cars seen driving in this area—was due to the fact that the closer they came to their destination, the harder it would have been to maneuver a vehicle through the pedestrians. The couple had walked only a block and by this point, but the streets were already too crowded for even a sedan to navigate successfully. Again, it must be stated that Sierra is a relatively small town, but on this day of celebration for the northern kingdom, the people of this relatively small town enjoyed the idea of a festival and flocked to the park to be merry alongside their friends or families from the other side of the border—after all, it was only with Vale's assistance that the celebrated victory had been achieved. Blake could not estimate the population of this crowd. It was not nearly as dense as the many crowds of the city but there were still a lot of people here. Fortunately, she still did not seem bothered by their presence or nervous because of her lack of bow. The only acknowledgements she had received from these people had been in the forms of friendly smiles and passing greetings despite her heritage and relationship. Perhaps they could not be bothered to care or they were too happy to notice, but the fact of the matter was that their indifference allowed Blake to feel comfortable.

"Huh," Yang said, taking a break half-way through her substitute for lunch. Blake looked to her and found her partner staring at the buildings on either side of the street. "So, you grew up here? It's kinda small, don't you think?"

Blake smirked. "And you don't think Vale is kinda big?"

"Yeah, probably even too big, but I can't see myself living anywhere this small." Her quizzical gaze turned towards Blake. "I mean, what did you do here for fun?"

"Me?" Blake asked disbelievingly.

"Oh, come on, you're fun! You were probably more fun as a kid, but that doesn't mean you're boring!"

Blake shrugged. "Honestly, there wasn't much to do outside of school, trips to the park, and reading. Somehow, I managed to occupy my time with those three activities fairly well." Yang waited for Blake to continue, returning to her cotton candy to pass the time. As she did so, the young Faunus attempted to recall something from her even younger years that would validate Yang's claim that she was not boring. "Well, there _was_ a movie theatre that we went to occasionally and we went hiking in the mountains one time."

Yang broke away from her cone. "Oh my God, that's so sad! I'm sorry for asking." Her voice gave off nothing but a sincerely sympathetic tone. It was as though she saw Blake's past situation as piteous. "Is this place really that bland?"

Blake raised an eyebrow to her. "Yang, I had an enjoyable childhood. I didn't mean for any of that to sound pitiful." Yang's eyes momentarily widened in realization before she laughed sheepishly, causing Blake to shake her head. "But to answer your question, no, I wouldn't say Sierra is bland." She looked ahead to where the entrance to the park would be located. "You will have to see for yourself." She returned to the cone in front of her as Yang stared incredulously for a moment before doing the same.

The crowds grew denser as they neared the last block they would have to traverse. At this point, dozens of families could be seen strolling along, lawn chairs and blankets in hand. They all seemed happy being together. It would be untrue to say that this did not cause a yearning, forlorn sensation within Blake. She felt cheated by herself and that she would never be able to be one of those children jumping up and down out of excitement—that wasn't her anymore and never could be. Yet, when she looked over to her girlfriend and the pleased look that she had after finishing her candy, Blake found a separate happiness that she would not replace with any other. Childhood was so very distant for her; life had always been so serious after joining the White Fang. Yang disregarded that seriousness and had shown that responsibilities and worries did not necessarily entail a lack of fun. She looked to the families again, glad for them rather than jealous.

She couldn't help but smile now. Yang was with her and the day looked to be perfect for the festival. The sun was at its highest point and lingered amidst infrequent, white clouds. Yet the forest around this town played into its aesthetic, allowing for matured trees to line the sides of roads and fill in the spaces and courts between shops, creating an ever-present shade to protect its people. A small, cool breeze floated through the crowd and blew any fallen leaves past the couple's feet. With this wind came the fading, distant scents of the park's recently mowed grass and the currently grilling concessions that most assuredly came from the various booths and stands set up for the day. To Blake, this kind of day had become a rare occurrence after leaving her home but was not at all one that she could possibly be disappointed in. With pleasant weather, sunny company, and a bright disposition, Blake thought that perhaps today would be ideal for forgetting her past stressors and simply living in the moment as she had been inclined to do when first deciding to join the sisters for their summer.

The two arrived at the park's entrance and had stopped to look on at the many groups using the street and present intersection as though it was a large sidewalk. In their immediate view were trees taller than the ones they had passed standing both in front of and behind a short brick wall. Though the reason why was not apparent to Yang yet, this park was the town's pride and rightfully so if the young Faunus remembered correctly. This park was larger than it seemed. "So," her partner drawled, pulling Blake back into the present, "I'm guessing that," she pointed her depleted cone at the open gate the townspeople were funneling into, "is where we're going?" Blake nodded before looking at her own candy. It wasn't nearly half-way finished, but she didn't feel like eating any more of it. At the same time, she didn't want to waste what Yang had given her. "Do we need to find another way in? It looks kinda hard to get through right now."

Sighing, Blake considered their options. There were entrances at every corner of this park, but the nearest one that was not the gate before them was at least another three blocks away, perhaps more. Then again, it could be assumed that the other entrances would be as crowded as this. They could simply hop over the wall but there was no reason to do so other than avoiding a crowd that had proven rather welcoming. There was no entry fee for this event and entering in such a surreptitious manner would most likely draw undue attention their way. Yang was present and had made moving through a crowd possible many times in the past. Blake replied, "No, I can handle this."

The smirk sent her way seemed almost proud despite the unmistakable excitement it showed. "All right. Let's get in there so I can see what's so great about this place." They moved forward and Blake returned with a smirk of her own, hopeful that her memories proved beneficial for once.

They moved with the flow of traffic and joined the line. Almost immediately, a small group concerned only about their own matters followed them into the queue and solidified the fact that Blake was now amongst a crowd. Surprisingly, she did not feel tense because of these newcomers or the many in front of her. It felt as though she and Yang were the only people in the line. She had already come to understand that this town was accepting, but she was unsure if this was the primary cause of her ease among these people. The line moved at a fairly steady rate that, alongside their composed excitement and air of jubilation that was infectious, kept Blake's mood delighted rather than timid. However, Yang's presence kept her excitement at a reasonable, manageable level due to the apparent need to be the mature one of their group. Whenever the line stalled, she saw the blonde tap either her foot against the ground or her hand against her leg to an allegro beat of an aimless melody she had been hummed throughout their short wait. Soon enough, those ahead of the couple moved onto the branching paths behind the gate, going this way and that without much care for where they would arrive. Next it was their turn to join the festivities.

On this stone path that separated into five others, nothing more than the people who walked ahead made it immediately clear that a celebration was occurring, but Blake knew beforehand that they would not be met with the festivities the moment they walked in. The sound of a large group of people talking, shouting, and laughing was able to be heard now that they were beyond the gate, but at this present juncture, they could only see the paths that fanned out ahead, the trees that lined them, and the people that walked over the small hills that just obscured the horizon. Yang looked skeptical but moved with Blake down the center path nonetheless. They passed by a garbage can (currently empty, but it would be filled thrice over by the end of the day) and disposed of their concessions. However, Yang still seemed unconvinced that there was any merit to this place, judging by her smile falling slowly into a bored expression. As an attempt to counter this, Blake assured, "One of the reasons why this park is held in high regard is due to the effort put into making it aesthetically pleasing. Past these hills is where events like this are held." Yang gave her a disbelieving look which Blake took in stride. "I was told as a child that these hills were supposed to build suspense before showing the park fully."

Yang rolled her eyes and laughed, shaking off the expression that had nearly seemed unenthused. "Why does everything have to be a book thing with you?"

"Why is this town automatically boring simply because it isn't Vale?" Blake's own jab caused the blonde to give a shorter, louder laugh.

"Fair point. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt since you're the one who lived here, but I just want you to know that I'm not impressed yet." Her words were those of a playful challenge rather than a condescending remark. Blake shook her head before quickening her pace, cueing Yang to catch up as they rapidly approached the crest of the hill.

The two looked out over the small valley turned large park, one in nostalgic appraisal and the other in surprised awe. The path carried on before them as it dipped back down the hill and across an empty, grassy plain that served to transition between a tranquil, forest setting and a shining, jubilant sprawl of humanity. These people gathered at the numerous booths and stands offering concessions and games to their right and at the large stage to their left. In front of this stage, many were claiming their spots with lawn chairs and blankets and created a veritable sea of people all speaking and laughing with one another. This large stage, the most ornate structure of this park and perhaps the town, was where the orchestra would eventually play but where currently loud, popular music was blaring. Even from this rather large distance, the sound could be heard by both girls, but not even Blake with her unbound ears could recognize the song at its current volume. After approvingly taking in the sight she had last seen as a child, Blake looked to Yang and found her eyes fixated on the sight before them.

She composed herself before smirking at Blake, only to find that the girl in black was giving her much the same expression. "Okay," she said, "color me impressed. You've got Vale beat in the tree and nature departments _and_ there doesn't seem to be a rude person around. So, I guess this place isn't _that _bland." By this point, Blake had already figured that Yang was enjoying their trip, so the idea of her being happier about her decision to join her was not the main cause of the Faunus' smile. She smiled because she had seemingly proven that this trip and was able to remove any worries about her past that concerned her childhood or relationship with her family. Of course, she also was happy because Yang was happy—it was hard not to be.

Blake did not say anything in response, simply taking hold of a gloved hand and pulling her girlfriend down the path instead. The closer they came to the event, the more the sounds of harmless chatter and faintly coherent music overpowered the chirpings of invisible birds and soft rustling of leaves. Once more, the path before them split but only into two directions this time. Blake chose the path to their right, intending to experience the booths and other attractions before settling down for the concert. Those that had brought blankets and chairs chose the opposite direction, assumingly with the idea that they would claim their spots in front of the stage before heading over to the concessions. Because the couple lacked either item, they moved towards the lines and crowds of the festival.

The queues in front of the booths and stands seemed insufferable as far as Blake could see but were all muddled due to the back-and-forth foot traffic that made no attempts at a two-lane system. This was the confusion of the crowd at a distance. Enthusiasm and jubilation, as great as they were, proved detrimental to order and structure whenever they influenced one's walking pattern. Unfortunately, this affected more than just one person and made it difficult for Blake to see a clear way through, thus forcing her to stop before reaching it. She stared at the obstacles for a moment before she felt Yang's grip on her hand tighten.

"So, where do you want to go first?" Blake thought her partner's avoidance of her hesitation was purposeful and dismissing—she was thankful for that.

Unfortunately, she did not have an answer for the posed question. Everything that she would have wanted to do as a child now seemed either immature or impractical. The various games and challenges offered in a few of the booths seemed too easy for her after all the training she had been through and she saw the flat "rollercoasters" (they could hardly be called this at their elevations and intended speeds) as unamusing to her older self. She also found any concessions pointless after Yang's earlier purchase. "I don't know," she replied evenly before looking back at her partner. "What about you?"

"I don't know either. I can't really see much from here. Why don't we take a look around and see if anything catches our eye?" Blake nodded and was quickly pulled along by Yang. The blonde must have been confident about maneuvering through the imposing crowd because there was no trepidation in her steps. This was another point Blake made towards the idea of Yang being able to supplement where she felt weak. Though the action of helping her through a crowd has been discussed at length by this point, she felt that it must be reiterated for this particular circumstance. In this instance, Blake was not necessarily scared of the crowd, merely hesitant about how she would go about moving through it due to no clear path to take. The walkway had become invisible, being obscured by lines that began at the booths on one side of the path and ended a few dozen feet away on the other side. At the same time, the back-and-forth traffic overflowed onto the grass on either side, crossing through the lines without any party involved caring. Yang seemed confident with the flowing movement enough to pull Blake into it.

There was something about this crowd. Blake wasn't necessarily comfortable but she did not feel threatened or watched. She couldn't focus on a single conversation, being around enough to find that the crowd's language had become as incoherent as the music, but she could tell from the general nature of the group that everyone was happy to see one another. It was strange to think that such a large group of people could tolerate one another in this manner. The city was not nearly as hospitable—the people were nice, just not universally. Moreover, she came to believe during her time with the White Fang that people simply could not be this tolerant of one another outside of idyllic, utopian circumstances. Both Yang and this town had proven the organization's beliefs wrong in this regard. The crowd was intimidating but did not intimidate—the size was imposing but its people were not. As the two seamlessly merged into the many, Blake did not feel as though her ears were being watched. When she looked to those around her, she found their gazes directed at each other, at the people directly in front of them, or on their eventual destination. Those behind the couple looked at Blake and Yang only to gauge the distance between themselves and the girls as not to collide with them. It was once again cynical pragmatism that spared the Faunus from the assumed glares of the unknown.

Every so often, Yang would stand on her toes to gain the extra inch necessary to look over the crowd. Every time, it made Blake smile. The blonde was only a few inches taller than Blake, but even then she was not tall enough to always see over the varied people here. A grumble of discontent was heard before Blake was pulled off of the path and was moved closer to the booths. At this distance, they could see the purposes of the stands easier but they knew that none would be simple to access with the lines being as long as they were. Blake thought that the lines they were struggling through would exist throughout the park. However, they suddenly emerged from the sea of patrons to reveal a row of stands and trailers that did not serve food and were thusly lacking lines. This caused a wave of relief to wash over Blake and an eager grin to Yang.

The blonde jerked the Faunus forward, causing Blake to ask, "Yang, what is it?" She hadn't seen the grin, having been distracted by the relatively open space that came as a breath of fresh air and the blinking lights that lined the trailers.

"C'mon!" Yang urged. "There's a thing over there I want to do. And I don't want a line to form before we get there, so come on!" Blake saw a gloved hand pointing towards the trailer that held some form of game. She wanted to argue that it was unlikely a line could form in the time it would take them to reach it, but doing so would suffocate the sunny enthusiasm she had been anticipating. She happily sped up to match her partner's pace and arrived at the attraction soon after. It was a purposefully gaudy show that nearly blinded the young Faunus with the multicolored lights and larger-than-life stuffed animals. If it was Yang's intention to win one of these, Blake would be forced to argue against for practicality's sake. However, the blonde didn't seem to be in the competitive mood yet, instead staring wide-eyed at the sight.

"You are aware that we can't carry one of those with us, right?" Yang remained unresponsive, staring blankly at the drained milk bottles stacked in neat, untouched triangles. Understanding that her partner was contemplating whether or not she would attempt this feat, Blake felt the need to ask, "Have you ever done this before?"

Yang shook her head. "I've walked by a few of these before and always wanted to try."

"Would you like to now?"

Her responding look was indicative of resounding yes. Their hands disconnected as Yang began to fish for something in her jacket's pockets and the two began moving towards the trailer. Seeing their approach, the man inside began barking the challenge to those who would listen of hitting all the bottles in the triangle of six down with three throws of a ball. "Welcome, welcome, ladies," the man sneered as they stopped before him, managing somehow to make his greeting encouraging. "You know the rules; you've heard 'em before. To buy the tools, you'll pay Lien four." His statement was clear enough, but the rhyme attached to it and its shortness came across as odd. Still, Yang wordlessly handed him the white card that Blake had seen many times before. He moved three balls out to the counter before swiping the card in his nearby machine. Yang seemed to forget about the card, focusing only on a ball that she now hefted and appraised.

Because of her partner's preoccupation, the man handed the card to Blake instead. When she took it, she had the urge to inspect it and sate the curiosity that had arisen when Yang first used it in front of her. However, doing so would be undoubtedly rude and would probably detriment their relationship. Instead, she simply held onto the card, intending on waiting for Yang to finish her attempt. Her partner continued to observe the ball, apparently checking its weight and balance. Blake stepped closer to her and quietly asked, "Is something wrong? Are the balls weighted strangely?"

"No, I don't think so. They're a bit heavier than I thought they'd be." She tossed the ball suddenly, throwing it off to the side of the triangle and missing by a sizable margin and causing it to ping off the metal of the trailer's back wall. "But they fly right, I guess."

"That was a miss, miss," the man stated but did not draw the attention of either girl away from the second ball. "Aim towards the center and that would be better. Shoot too high and you'll be out another try."

Neither girl listened to what he said, already knowing what needed to be done. "Do you need me to ask him to stop?" Blake asked.

"It's tempting. At least I know when I get on people's nerves with rhymes." They didn't laugh but found the conversation humorous. It would be inappropriate to laugh at the moment as the small action would disrupt their concentration. "You think the bottles are made out of metal?"

"Yeah. They are designed to be difficult to knock down." A silence settled over the two as they stared at the triangle. The longer this silence lasted, the more impatient the man seemed, but the girls didn't care. Eventually, Blake asked, "Do you have your target?"

"Yup," Yang replied simply. Blake smoothly backed away and watched as Yang gave the man a knowing smirk. She then turned back to the bottles with fire in her eyes before throwing. Her previous throw, in relation, was but a casual toss with little force behind it so that she could test the weight of the ball. This throw—rather, this pitch—was executed with such force that as soon as the ball touched one of the bottles on the second level, the entire structure exploded with a satisfying clatter, sending bottles throughout the trailer's cabin and allowing the rubber ball to leave a sizable dent in the back wall. Yang stepped back and looked to Blake, grinning toothily and laughing excitedly. "That was easier than they make it look in the movies."

Blake rolled her eyes and handed her the card back. The man looked to them with an expression comprised of bewilderment and disdain. "Okay, you hit 'em all. Pick a prize." His patience had apparently worn thin, causing him to thankfully forgo rhyming.

"Nah, I'm fine. I didn't really need one anyways." Yang quickly turned her smile to Blake. "So, you wanna take a shot at it?"

She considered the idea for a moment, having seen how much fun Yang seemed to have during and after her attempt. However, she decided that four lien for three throws was an exorbitant amount. "I'll pass." Truthfully, she wouldn't have minded attempting the feat, but she wanted to save her money for food, water, and attractions that she believed were smart purchases. This was not one such attraction.

"Oh, come on! It's not that hard." The game's operator did not seem pleased by this testimony. Blake wanted to say that difficulty was not the limiting factor in this situation, but was unable to when Yang handed her card back to the man. "One more round. This time, for her."

A glare was sent the blonde's way as the balls were placed on the counter without any fanfare. "Please stop buying me things without my permission." Blake would not decline this instance due to the scolding from Weiss having taken root in her mind, but she hoped that by saying this, she could avoid future instances of unnecessary spending. Yang was trustworthy and dependable, so the young Faunus hoped that this plea would be heeded.

Unfortunately, Yang's smile lingered. "Nope! I can't do that. See, it's my job now to spoil you and make you happy. Honestly, it's not a problem. We're on vacation…while we're on vacation. I can afford to spend a lot on this kind of stuff. Plus, you already paid for the flight and hotel." Blake sighed. Any counter-argument she could imagine would not be able to aptly convince Yang she was wrong—honestly, she was having a difficult time convincing herself of this. Blake understood that during such a trip, excessive spending was nearly unavoidable and she was aware of the amount she had already spent on travel alone. On top of this, she knew Yang was equally as stubborn as she was trustworthy and dependable. Blake couldn't say that she was not stubborn herself, though. Help of any kind outside of combat was not easily accepted yet despite her efforts to change this. She looked to the feat ahead and the glowering operator and knew that she had the opportunity that she had somewhat desired. She sighed again and picked up a ball.

It was heavier than she thought it would be. It felt as though it was filled with some sort of material rather than being the hollow ball she had expected. She heard Yang approach her side to look over her shoulder at the next stack of bottles. All thoughts of defiance by this point had been dismissed and replaced with observations about the task at hand. She spun the ball around, trying to understand its texture and what grip she would have to put on it to keep her throw accurate. Without looking at Yang, she asked, "Did the second ball you threw have any pull on either side?"

"No, they fly straight—surprisingly straight." Blake adjusted her grip accordingly. "I wouldn't try any sort of arc, though. You were right when you said they were built to stay standing. I'd beam it if I were you." Blake nodded. Instead of aiming for the second level like Yang had, she looked to the center bottle of the triangle's base. She pictured taking out the single bottle that maintained the integrity of the structure and saw the bottles collapse. She did not need to ask any further questions and took aim, gauged the strength she would need to use, and threw.

The center bottle instantly vanished, causing a collapse like Blake had hoped for. However, instead of the rest of the bottles falling towards the center as she had planned, they collapsed to the left, toppling all but the right-most bottle. She sighed, realizing too late that she had put her faith in this game not being rigged like all the others around her. As the man was telling her to make her second toss, she eliminated the final bottle quickly and without much deliberation. The planning around the first throw had been fun, but in the end it turned out to be disheartening. She didn't bother listening to the man offer a prize and instead turned to Yang. She didn't know why she looked to her this quickly, but she felt hurt and she thought Yang would be able to make it better.

"Nice shot!" Any belief that the blonde was patronizing her went away with a wink. "Remind me not to get you mad when you have a ball in your hand." Yang laughed, but quickly stopped when she saw her partner looking back at where the bottles once stood. Blake thought that she could have taken them all down in one throw had she been aware of the balance of the bottles. Had she thrown a little further to the left, her plan would have worked perfectly. She felt Yang put an arm over her shoulder before kissing the side of the head. "It's all right, kitten." She felt her partner's head lean against hers as they both looked in the same direction. "They were both great throws—you actually hit what you were aiming for which is better than I can say for myself." Blake couldn't think of a response and chose to hum noncommittally instead. Yang sighed. "You know this doesn't mean anything, right?" This caused Blake to look at her, wondering what she was talking about. "Just because you couldn't knock a few lead bottles down the first time doesn't mean anything. You took that last one out without even thinking about it. If that's not skill, I don't know what is. So, I'll say it again: that was a nice shot."

Perhaps she was being too critical of herself. She had knocked the structure down in the same number of throws as Yang. Even still, if anybody was going to best her at a game of accuracy like that, she would rather it be her partner than an enemy. She took a composing breath. "Thanks, Yang," she whispered before nuzzling into the collar of her girlfriend's jacket.

Yang tightened the hold and pulled Blake forward. "Come on. Let's go find something else to do. Hopefully something that's not rigged." Blake nodded and looked ahead as she allowed herself to be pulled further down the path, towards booths and stands thus far unexplored.

Perhaps Weiss was right and she had lost her edge. Blake had felt disappointed in herself before but never to such a degree because of an action so simple. It was just a ball thrown at bottles, nothing more. There should not have been any pain for being unable to win at a game she knew beforehand was rigged, yet she felt as though she had failed in front of Yang and it would decrease her standing with the blonde. She knew that this wasn't true, but she felt the pain nonetheless. She didn't blame Yang for her potentially dulled edge, her sudden insecurity; she blamed herself. She hadn't fired Gambol Shroud in over two weeks and it was likely she fell out of practice with her aim. Furthermore, she couldn't keep her mind off of Yang, even when she was focused on her target. She sighed as they continued on, attempting to brush off these self-destructive sentiments so that she could enjoy their day.

Beside them were more games and challenges with the occasional food or drink stand in between. This area was far less crowded than the area behind them, presumably because these booths attracted children and young adults more than the majority population of adults for the most part. None of the booths looked interesting anymore as she knew that the feat they just came from was more in their favor than any of the others. Yang seemed to be of a similar mindset because her scanning gaze passed the nearby attractions over without much of a second glance while she held Blake close.

Perhaps Weiss was wrong and her edge still existed, sharper than ever. The criticality of her throw was quite possibly necessary. She truly had been out of practice with Gambol Shroud and she felt that her throws showed her the degree to which she had become deficient. Reasonably speaking, she hadn't thrown poorly and she had hit her mark exactly how she wanted to. She could have added a bit more strength to it, but besides that, her throw was acceptable. The results were the only disappointing part of the feat. Yet Yang seemed to find quality in her attempts and had been the one who helped her plan. It was refreshing to have her act more as a partner than a girlfriend for a moment. Blake smiled. All things considered, they were decent throws and she had won in the end. The sting of defeat proved unwarranted due to Yang's accepting nature. She leaned into the hold and felt Yang rub her arm.

She couldn't see to their left because of their positioning, but Blake could hear sounds of nearby conversation and knew that people were sitting at tables or in the grass on the other side of the path. However, their collective volume could not compare to the cheering and laughing from a source obscured by a group of people ahead. Yang heard it as well and immediately became attentive to whatever the noises were. Their pace unwittingly increased as they were compelled to find the cause of this current excitement. As they neared, Blake found that the group simply standing there, obscuring the noise, was debating whether or not it would be worth their time to partake in the event happening in front of them. When Yang was finally able to push through the loiterers, she stopped with the rest of them and audibly gasped at the sight before her. Blake watched as this wide-eyed expression gradually shifted from surprised to a level of excitement many of the children in this park simply could not match. Before Blake could ask her about it, Yang pushed her towards the sight's line, resolutely stating only one word: "Teacups."

The laughs and screams came from the whirling, spinning attraction of larger-than-life teacups holding families and groups of children, all adding to the town-wide jubilation that was admittedly still a little strange to the Faunus. Because this was not a game that could be won or lost and because it didn't have excessively showy lights and colors, Blake was willing to join the line along with her partner who put her enthusiasm to shame. Another reason why Blake was instantly appreciative of this sight was the way the line winded and folded rather than stretched past the path to become an annoyance. There was the fact that they would have to stand in a line of people, but the smile on Yang's face was something she could not in good conscience disrupt. Instead, she wanted to see her smile brighten even further (if that was possible) and she wanted to know why she was this excited. There was suspicion that Yang's intentions for going on this ride were rooted in some joke about Blake's taste for tea, but she figured that asking would be better than assuming. "So?" She beamed at Blake before the Faunus could continue. "Are you going to tell me why you're so happy to ride this?"

"Sure!" Yang chirped. Before she could begin her explanation, the attraction slowed and the current group riding it exited, causing the line to move forward and people to fill in behind the couple. The sideways hold never broke, leaving the two standing side-by-side in the confines of the guiding belts on either of their sides. Yang continued. "I used to go on these all the time with Ruby and my mom. It pretty much became a thing where we would _have_ to stop any time we walked by one of these. It was great because me and Ruby always spun it as fast as we could and always made our mom sick—or at least she said she was sick to make us laugh. It was great!" She laughed, assumingly out of pure excitement created by the opportunity to recreate the occurrence. "I've probably been on about a hundred or two and now I get to ride one with you!"

Blake couldn't help but point out, "Yang, please don't rhyme. Not today." She had intended her speech to be good-natured with its pleading context and she felt that it was effective judging by Yang's laugh. She doubted her partner had been aware of her rhyme, but after the bottle toss, she felt a light-hearted distaste for the act. However, As much as she wanted to be mirthful with Yang, a question pulled at her mind, spurred by something the blonde had stated so nonchalantly. "Yang?" She caught her partner's attention. "You aren't going to try to spin the cup too fast, are you?"

As a brief aside, it must be stated that due to her specific physiology, Blake's balance is highly developed and comfortable but concurrently fragile in certain instances. As with all Faunus whose observable traits are ears that augment balance and hearing, the likelihood of being affected by vertigo is very high and was the reason she was hesitant about the ride after Yang had mentioned spinning which, judging by her strength shown over the past year, would likely become rather quick. With her drive to become a huntress and proven ability in combat, it was only natural that Blake was used to high speeds while maintaining her balance; however, all natural movements for her were in either straight or slightly curved lines; she—and a majority of Remnant's population for that matter—seldom moved in a rapid, circular pattern. This was not a matter of motion sickness—she had lost that at a young age—rather, it was due to an upset in the inner ear of her Faunus characteristics. For the sake of progression, the details of this affliction will not be elaborated on much further, but it must be stated that during the factory protest of years ago, her loss of balance had been attributed to a disruption of the inner-ear organ by the thunder, not by momentary deafness alone.

"Why do you ask?" Yang beamed.

Blake's smile lessened by a small percentage. "You didn't answer my question." She was beginning to think that this ride was a bad idea for her. She could handle spinning at decent speeds as would be normal for such a ride and she could handle Yang's overzealousness when it came to something she wanted to do, but she doubted her ability to deal with both at the same time.

Sadly, Yang's unbreakable smile cracked to reveal the concern that she now held. "If it's going to bother you, then I can slow it down. I don't really want to make you sick—we were kids and there was no way we could have made my mom dizzy anyway." Blake allowed her smile to return to its previous state, trusting that her partner would not purposefully harm her. Yang's smile, however, did not shine as bright as it had. "Blake, I'll follow your lead. We don't have to go any faster than what you're comfortable with."

"I'll be fine," she sighed, leaning back into her partner's collar and closing her eyes as she waited for the line to shorten. "Just try to stay conscious of your speed." She could only hope that Yang would take her advice as she had resigned to this relaxed state for, hopefully, the duration of their time in line. She felt Yang's head rest on her own again, allowing for greater relaxation and warmth to supplement the pleasant, sunny day.

Before she had closed her eyes, she had looked to the crowd to determine how long they would have to wait before boarding. She figured that they would not be with the next group but perhaps with one of the subsequent two. There was a large amount of teacups for a festival in a town of this size—perhaps more than what was necessary. Though, she could see the benefit of bringing this attraction to the festival; there was a surprising amount of people here for a town of this size. It was probable that many who were here for the festival came from other towns in the area or even from the few towns just across the border (it was not odd considering Blake and Yang had come for the event). Regardless of this assumed gathering of myriad towns, the people acted as though they had known each other for years and seemed to be universally friendly.

Suddenly, Blake's ears twitched, perking at something that concerned her interest. The word "Faunus" had been said not too far away from where she stood. She listened intently to ensure she was not mistaken but found the word said once more. Hearing it again, she was able to ascertain the source's general position and voice. Instantly, she knew that those that had been saying the word were of no immediate threat. She dared not look at the younger boys' positions in line as it would give away the fact that she was eavesdropping on them. "Shut up," one said. "I'm not racist. I just haven't seen many Faunus up-close before."

"Dude, you are racist if you think that being this far away from her is 'up-close.'" They sounded younger than she and Yang were, but older than most of the children queued for this ride—they were perhaps fourteen or fifteen.

"What do you want me to do, go up and ask her?"

"Sure. You're never gonna do it, but why not."

"Yeah, okay. I'm just gonna walk up and say, 'Hey, what's up? I see you two are going out. Isn't that illegal?' That'd work just great. You know how they are. You say one thing wrong and they threaten to call the White Fang on you or something."

Blake fought the urge to turn around and tell them about how wrong they were about everything, but simply released an agitated sigh instead. "Blake?" Yang asked. "What is it?" Blake shook her head, silently telling her that it was nothing. The matter concerned Yang as well, but she felt that if her partner knew what the two boys had said, they would all be forcibly removed from the premises due to her probable actions.

She could not decide which matter was more pressing at the moment. She had spent years fighting for equality and had recently begun fighting for the disassociation of the Faunus people from the militant organization. For this reason, the boy's latter thoughts were able to evoke her ire; yet it was his dramatized question that roused her rare fury. To think that their relationship as human and Faunus was wrong was not only wrong itself, but it was representative of the majority population's beliefs about Faunus. However, these boys—these children—didn't seem to have an understanding or respect for the effects of racism, having thrown the term around enough times to make its blade turn to bone. She was associating the other boy because he was apparently the speaker's friend and had enabled the speech. They were sickening—moronic, blissfully immature, and personally insulting. She loved Yang and she believed this boy who knew neither girl and claimed the sentiment wrong was misguided. It was absurd and frustrating—evocative of defensive urges that she had to suppress to maintain some form of integrity.

As she had never been in a true relationship before Yang, Blake had little experience with dealing with this particular form of distrust and ignorance. Within the White Fang, there was an underlying hatred for the sort of relationship she was currently in, but they were purists and she had escaped from their clutches. Their beliefs were not her own if it was not already evident. The thought that their relationship was wrong was an unfair assessment. They were both of mature mindsets and knew each other well enough to recognize their limits. Moreover, their attraction was true and unyielding. From her personal perspective, the boy's suggestion that their relationship was "wrong" came as a shockingly irreverent concept.

Furthermore, if such a relationship was "wrong," then her mother wouldn't have been born and, in effect, neither would she. Her grandparents held such a relationship which had worked out successfully from what she had been told. Of course, their child had been shunned by both sides of the conflict, but times had changed and Yang and Blake would not have to worry about any child for the foreseeable future. It was the distant thought about the child that made her want to blush, but it was necessary to prove her point before she could indulge in sentimentality. There was nothing keeping them from dating—the unfounded argument of legality did not bother her as much as the thought that them dating was bad in any way. If they were insinuating that their relationship was of a human and an animal, then this claim could be classified as racism. Faunus were not animals; animals lack the abilities to speak, animals lack the ability to think logically, and animals certainly could not find the sort of sensation Blake felt in the relationship she had with Yang. However, they would not care if they were racist. They were not worth her time, she thought before sighing.

She felt forward movement and opened her eyes. They were nearing the ride's entrance, but doubted they would join the group currently boarding. Fortunately, she was proven wrong. Yang quickly handed her card to the woman operating the register beside the entrance. Just as quickly as Blake felt the forward movement, they were led to their own cup and away from the two boys she was glad to leave. She smiled as Yang attempted to increase their speed so they might get to their teacup before the attendant could show them to it. Their seats were within a carriage painted colors uncharacteristic to either girl: pink and green. However, they happily boarded, free of care or worry that could spawn from questionable statements or a certain physiological fragility.

Yang slid onto the curved bench and immediately gripped the disk in the center which would allow them to spin once the ride began. Blake sat opposite her so that they could hopefully watch each other's expressions throughout the ride. The attendant closed the door, backed away, and waved to the woman behind the register. Yang grinned and Blake could not suppress the excitement that shined through her pursed smile. "You ready for this? I promise I'll keep it under control." Blake nodded. "Thanks for doing this, Blake." She felt the ride begin to move but didn't bother to look around, instead training her eyes on the glimmering, lilac orbs that emulated the smile that was on her girlfriend's lips.

Soon enough, the ride was fully underway, reaching its top speed that truly wasn't very fast; the speed was to come from the individual cups spinning. Yang began to pull on the disk and instantly they began rotate in a clockwise manner, inspiring the bowless girl to help. As they pulled and increased the speed gradually, they kept their eyes riveted on one another's in an unblinking show of affection. This eventually turned into a staring contest as the speed continued to pick up. Yang stuck out her tongue and began making a face that was obviously designed to make the Faunus laugh. Blake fought the urge to do so off and instead sent as caustic a glare as she could muster back in jest. The blonde responded by mimicking this look. However, she was too excited to hold any sort of faux angry expression adequately, causing her partner to shake her head, telling her silently that her attempts were not working while keeping her own glare steady. Yang seemed to disagree as she nodded, sending back the message that her looks were working. Blake relented and rolled her eyes, breaking eye contact and unleashing the flood of laughter that Yang had been feebly suppressing.

It was an honest laugh of happiness and bliss rather than at the humor of the situation. Soon enough, Blake was laughing too—lightly at first, but her enthusiasm quickly built to a level similar to Yang's. They spun the cup faster and faster and were forced to close their eyes to avoid eye contact that would cause even more mirth. When Blake finally reopened her eyes, she saw Yang with one of the most wonderful smiles she'd ever seen as she continued to laugh. Knowing that she had caused this happiness for her partner made a pride and confidence well in Blake's chest. She didn't care that the landscape behind them was blurring or that she could barely hear the assistant yelling at them to slow down—she didn't care that when the cup stopped she would doubtlessly lose her balance and be subject to pain caused by her Faunus traits. Yang was happy now. How could their relationship possibly be wrong?

The last thing Blake saw before her vision began to swim was Yang's expression change from unwieldy mirth to a calm, focused, almost loving look directed solely and undeniably at her. Reciprocation was attempted but faltered as the ride began to slow while the spinning of her vision increased. They had spun too fast and the inner-ear organ, as resilient as it had become over the years for Blake, could not withstand Yang's strength. Blake quietly gasped as she suddenly felt her balance fail her. She felt faint, as though she could pass out at any moment, but she knew that such an instant effect would never come. The ride continued to slow and her hearing began to dull. She would be trapped like this until the sensations passed—she wished that she could pass out as it would relieve her of the pain. "Blake?" she barely heard Yang ask. She felt the weight of the cup shift and a figure moving to her side to keep her upright. She believed the ride had stopped. Why else would she be on her feet?

Blake groaned as she failed to find her footing. Fortunately, Yang supported her in a one arm carry, allowing the Faunus to stay upright but causing her feet to drag as she was pulled along. Blake didn't want help. If she couldn't move on her own, what was the point of training to become a huntress? What was the point of trying to be the best possible girlfriend for Yang if she could not withstand a teacup ride, let alone stand afterward? She couldn't answer these questions right now—it was painful to think. She vaguely understood that she needed help and would take it. Blake made multiple attempts to walk, but each time she found that her knees could not support her weight. Every time she blinked, the world looked new and not in any way that was refreshing or revitalizing. She didn't know where she was in the park and couldn't bring herself to even think about it. She was dizzy, Yang was holding her, and they were moving; this was all she knew.

"Hang in there, Blake," Yang urged. "You're gonna be all right. Just breathe and let me carry you." She had never heard Yang this panicked before. It would have been heart-warming if moving hadn't felt so impossible. She tried to heed her advice by breathing, but found that this was about all she could do. Her sight was out of her control. She saw a nearing structure but all she knew about it was that it was white and swaying. "Don't worry. I've got you."

Yang was all but carrying her by this point but did not slow in her stride. From her perspective, she saw that her girlfriend was hurt and needed to be moved to a place where she could recover. They were heading towards a tent that was probably intended for people to find tables that were out of the sun's burning gaze so they could eat in peace. Though, Yang did not know for certain if this was the point of tent and could only hope for her partner's sake that she was correct. The Faunus' head kept shaking, potentially out of her instinctual need to follow her swimming sight but more than likely it was Blake trying to rid herself of her dizziness. She was a fighter and wouldn't let this slow her down for long, but it strained the blonde to see her fighter in such a weakened state.

They entered the tent and Yang found that she had been correct. She didn't care about the families and other inconsequential groups who looked her way when she carried the weary girl in. There was a secluded corner against the back wall that she moved towards. She knew Blake needed to recuperate and thought seating her around people she didn't know would undoubtedly be detrimental to the process. She moved to the table that was as far back in the corner as one could be and sat Blake in a chair beside it. This was the first chance Yang had to see her girlfriend's face since they were on the ride and the sight she was met with was painful. Blake's expression was stuck in a troubled wince, obscuring the sobering, amber eyes that so often let her know that her world was warm and secure. Without being able to see those eyes, Yang felt as though her world was beginning to fall apart and that she would do anything to get them to open again. She leaned down and placed a kiss on Blake's head. "Okay, Blake, I'm going to go get you some water. I'll be back in a minute, all right?" She waited a few moments for a response before asking again. "All right?"

Blake wanted to rest and wished Yang would stop asking for permission to buy her something. "Sure," she groaned a bit more aggressively than she would have liked. As soon as this was said, she heard the blonde bolt out of the tent. She crossed her arms and buried her face in them, escaping from the light so that the shadows could ease her pain as they had so many times before. In this darkness, the world continued to spin. She felt a headache coming on and there was nothing she could do to stop it. Her ears pressed flat against her head, reacting to the pain that they had been the cause of. She hadn't been this dizzy for as long as she could remember. She hadn't ever suffered from vertigo outside of the incident at the factory, so she was uncertain if this was severe dizziness or the suspected ailment. There was also the possibility of this being heat stroke, but she doubted this was the case.

Even the shadows couldn't block out the world. It seemed as though everything that had once been joyful was now irritating. The grating conversations of those around her would not cease and the distant music that was further muted by her momentary pain was annoying in the extreme. And there were people around her. Normally, she would care about them viewing her in such a vulnerable state, but now she didn't care about her state or their existence. They cared too much about themselves to offer help and were not the friendly bunch that she thought had been when she first arrived at this park. But perhaps she was just bitter.

Her sense of direction was returning at too slow a rate for her liking but there was nothing she could do to expedite it and she found that any return to normality was better than nothing. She found that controlling her breathing while blocking out those irksome stimuli allowed her to reach a desirable level of calmness and apathy. Quicker than her senses returned to her, the world around her became insignificant and easily ignorable. Truly now did the quietude she sought become achievable. The world still spun in her darkness and it was upsetting, but she knew that it would stop soon enough. She knew that Yang would return and make everything better.

It would be a few minutes until she next heard anything that caught her attention. Yang had not returned yet and Blake had begun to worry for her partner. The noise that she heard was not of the blonde's return, but of a child much younger than those boys in the line she had learned to hate in her current state. It was a little boy, a toddler if she was to guess by his diction choices and inability to properly pronounce any word with an "R." Her reason for paying attention to this child over all the others who were with their respective families was for a similar reason she initially listened to the flippant teenagers.

"Mommy?" he asked. "Where's that other girl? Why didn't she come back?" Blake was beginning to wonder the same thing, partly out of resentment but as well out of concern. She hoped that Yang hadn't gotten caught in one of the lines.

"I don't think we should ask that," the mother replied calmly.

Blake opened her eyes to stare at the table that was now mere inches from her face. Thankfully, it wasn't as spinning as fast as everything else, but it still wasn't in any fixed location. She blinked, hoping that the action would help before looking to the source of the voices. She had been correct in her inference that the speakers were a toddler and his mother. They didn't seem to notice her relatively fixed gaze on them, probably due to her only just peeking over her folded arms, but there was the probability of both being preoccupied by each other. "Why?" the child inquired in the way that children his age often did.

The mother shook her head and pointed her fork at the food that was in front of him. "We shouldn't ask that because it would be rude. We don't know them and I don't think they want us to know." A fairly accurate assumption, Blake thought. "Now, eat."

"But they kissed!" he practically shouted, causing his mother to attempt to calm him down and Blake to send him an impatient, headache-burdened glare that was barely able to stay on his small form. Unfortunately, neither effort seemed to be able to keep him down. "She isn't coming back! Why did they kiss?"

Fortunately, the mother had some sort of tactfulness about her. "Don't worry. I'm sure the other girl is coming back soon to take care of her." Blake had to keep herself from becoming angry at him. He was only a child. She couldn't fault him for being overly curious about a subject he had no business prying into, but she could be silently annoyed from afar until Yang returned or her pain subsided. She did not favorite one outcome over the other at this point as both seemed wonderful.

"But they kissed!" he repeated louder and insistently, testing the patience of both the present parent and the beleaguered Blake. "Why did they kiss? Do they love each other?"

The mother hesitated. "N-no," she stuttered, unsure of what to say. Yet she had said enough to have Blake's quiet anger focused on her instead of the boy. "I'm sure they care about each other very much…but I don't think they love each other. They're just really good friends." She sounded unsure of her words and Blake was unsure of when her patience would finally find its breaking point.

"Ew!" the child gasped. "Friends don't kiss each other!" She had to agree with him. What they had was beyond mere friendship and to label it as such was an insult. Her ire had shifted completely from the boy that now seemed innocent and innocuous to the mother who was passive and delusional. It was not Blake's place to judge her beliefs and morals—that was what the White Fang had done and why she had left—but she found it difficult to tolerate this defamation of their love.

Again, she hesitated, seemingly uncertain about how she would lie to her son next about what he had seen. She laughed in a way that was obviously nervous and forced to the Faunus but most likely fooled the child. "You're right. Most friends don't kiss each other. But they're just really good friends and will stop doing that when they are older and learn better." Perhaps it was Blake's study of literature mixing with her dazed anger, but she heard the woman calling her and Yang immature—she was certain that she was claiming that their love was simply a phase, but she saw a personal remark hidden in her speech as well. Blake's glare became harsher as she fought to remain calm and composed. She and Yang had devoted their lives to protecting these people from the Grimm and in return they were called immature. She had a difficult time deciding who was worse: this woman or the boys in line.

"But you and daddy kiss." He sounded genuinely confused and Blake could understand why.

"Your daddy and I kiss because we love each other." And she didn't love Yang? "They'll find daddies of their own to love and will stop kissing each other." Now she was implying that there was a person on Remnant who was better for her than Yang. This appalling logic had finally become an outright personal insult, whether the mother had been aware of it or not. There were many things that Blake wanted to say to this woman to defend herself and so many more things she wanted to do to defend Yang, but today was supposed to be happy and cheery and go without incident. Despite her dizziness, Blake had an amazing time today, but this woman and those boys had just about broken her patience. The woman was simply wrong. Blake didn't have the capacity at the moment to argue specific points but she knew that the woman was wrong. She didn't want to hear any more of this woman's ignorant lies. She understood that people had differing opinions and that her speech had not been purposefully harmful, but in this upset state, it was difficult for the Faunus to be anything other than bitter without Yang's presence.

She sat up in her chair and watched the world continue to spin. However, it was reasonably calm compared to how it had been before, allowing her to rise to her feet shakily. Her balance was still off but not gone completely—she could stand and probably walk if she kept focused. Blake briefly saw the mother and child look at her curiously before she moved toward the exit. She wanted to send back a glare but couldn't rationalize any reason beyond disagreement and emotional pain. She would be no better than the woman or the White Fang if she expressed her disapproval in such a manner. Instead, she staggered out of the tent, partly to get away from them but mostly to find Yang.

To her right were more rides, games, and an eventual tree line. She went left, moving back to the crowds of the concession stands without fear or concern. Her gait returned to a pace that looked to be normal to anyone who passed her by, yet it felt unsteady and as though she could topple at any moment. This was not how she expected their day to turn out. She hoped that it could still be salvaged and that they might find greater happiness later on, but she knew the recent incidents would leave impressions on her. They were just more bad memories to add to her library.

Her sight and hearing had returned by this point to a state where they were functional, if faulty. This gave her enough confidence in her abilities to believe that moving through the crowd while staying aware of those around her would be possible. She trudged forward, intent on searching the sea for her partner. However, she needed not look far because the bright-yellow, attention-grabbing sight came into view immediately. She had pushed her way out of the crowd and had began to run back to the tent but stopped when she saw the hobbling girl. "Blake?" In an instant, Yang was by her side and easing the discomfort of walking like this. "Blake, I told you to take it easy. What happened?"

Blake found a jarringly cold bottle of water shoved into her hands which she accepted gratefully. Her tone of voice, however, proved more pleading and dire. "Yang…" Speaking with this headache was excruciating and nearly impossible but she pressed on nonetheless. "Can we go somewhere else? I can't stay in the tent."

Yang's brows furrowed in concern. "You need to sit down. I promised your dad I'd keep you from getting heat stroke."

It wasn't heat stroke and she didn't want to return to the tent. "Yang…" she pleaded feebly and pitifully. She didn't care if she was no longer using her words to describe her needs; Yang surely understood and it was painful to think any longer.

Yang took a moment to seemingly debate which side she would take on the matter and eventually sighed in frustration. "Fine," she said carefully, "the concert should be starting soon so we'll see if we can find seats there. But we're sitting in the shade and away from the band. You getting better is our first priority. After that, then we can worry about the music. All right?" Blake nodded into her shoulder. She felt the bottle be pulled from her grasp and heard the click of its cap coming off before it was handed back to her. "Okay, drink up. We'll take it slow and you'll stay hydrated, all right?" Again, she nodded. At this, Yang pulled her along, acting as the Faunus' crutch and guide while Blake's eyes shut to keep out the light.

The water helped distract Blake from her headache and blind walk through the park. From what she could hear, they did not pass through the same crowds in front of the concessions as their pace did not slow and the volume of conversation thankfully decreased. Chatter was still present, leading her to believe that they were walking through the rows of tables that had been set up for festivalgoers. Perhaps Yang had seen a route they could take that would bring them to the stage. However, she had a feeling that the stage would not be their destination as the people who sat before it were exposed to the sun with this glade's purposeful lack of trees. Yang had said they would find shade but that they would also head for the stage. Blake did not attempt to assume the current time or their destination as they would be fruitless endeavors with her fatigue. Her focus was on recovery and staying hydrated as Yang had told her to do.

She found that the further they were from the teacups and tent, the easier it became to relax and forget the aggravating parties involved. She couldn't smile at the moment as the discomfort of their spinning had yet to completely disappear, but Blake looked back fondly on those few, short minutes on the ride. That was likely as close as she could have come to experiencing childlike wonderment. She had known that the spinning would inevitably detriment her wellbeing, but not only did she allow Yang to pull the cart faster, she helped as well. Seeing Yang smile the way she did encouraged her to throw any sense of self-preservation to the wind if only so that she could see her partner shine even brighter. That was the girl she loved and who she had made laugh. Her musical laugh had brought a sort of excited tranquility to the Faunus. In those few minutes that were far too short for Blake's liking, she realized that this trip had turned out to be incredible and unquestionably affirming for the beliefs she held about her own emotions. She would suffer through this momentary pain because she knew that Yang's smile had been worth it.

Her partner had also taken care of her without being asked to—actually, it is to say that she aided Blake despite her insistence that she shouldn't. She no longer saw her girlfriend's actions as selfless but instead loving. Whether or not Yang held the same sentiments Blake did was still to be determined, but the young Faunus saw these actions as intent care and concern that could only be synonymous with love. Her compliment by the bottle toss, her assistance in moving from the teacups, and the water that she now drank were all acts of kindness that she would have never seen in the White Fang. Yang didn't need to know what those judgmental people had said about them. They had already impacted Blake's day negatively and there was no reason she would subject her partner to this discord. Those people were unimportant to their day. All that mattered in this moment was the hug Blake was wrapped in and the recovery that she had begun to feel the effects of. She figured that if she could regain her balance and senses to the point where Yang could stop worrying, then their day might be fixed and they could find that same happiness again.

Wherever they were within the park, Blake wasn't sure. She did not want to open her eyes and reverse the healing process. She knew that she was recovering due to the same reason she wanted to open her eyes. The music coming from the stage had become clearer and recognizable, letting Blake know that her hearing was nearly back to normal and that they were getting closer to the stage at a decent rate. However, the knowledge of which pop song was playing did not concern her as much as the silence that followed it. During her previous times attending this event, there had always been a considerable pause between the appeasing, ambient music and the playing of the first composition by the orchestra. This quiet spread across the field and she knew that the orchestra was setting up. She risked opening one eye to see where they were and what the progress of the band was. The couple was surprisingly close to the supposed destination, being at the very back of the sea of lawn chairs and blankets that lay in front of the stage. She closed her eye soon after, finding that her vision had come back to working order but not to its peak state.

She hoped that they would change course and find a seat amongst all the other families, but found that they continued moving forward. "Just a little bit more," Yang told her, seemingly aware of her partner's subtle disappointment. "You need to relax and sitting out there isn't going to help with that. We're going for shade and I think I see a spot. Just hold on, Blake." There was no jovial tone to be found in her speech. It was sobering and forceful while being utterly caring and committed. Because of this, Blake complied and kept moving, finding her footing again with this longer walk.

This had been her most severe episode of disoriented balance from what she could remember, trumping even her initial practices in acrobatics and the ensuing flips, tumbles, and pirouettes therein. The effects of those had lasted perhaps a minute or two at most. With this particular instance, however, she could no longer keep track of time so she did not know the exact duration of her disorientation, yet she was certain it was longer than any other she had so far experienced. She knew this because she heard a sound that made her worried and allowed her to realize approximately what time it was. The orchestra sounded, announcing its undeniable presence with a single, collected, introductory note. They had not found a spot in time to properly enjoy the concert and this strangely put Blake on edge. She panicked because what she believed to be her final chance of reclaiming whatever childhood she had left was escaping her with every quarter note played. It sounded exactly as she remembered but because she could not enjoy the music as she had long ago, she could not stand it. However, Yang held her and let her know that in the end, everything was going to be all right. She felt their pace quicken and was immediately grateful for her partner.

The next few minutes became a blur to the young Faunus as her attention shifted away from their walk and her water to the song the band was playing. She had never memorized the overture, being that she was young and it was long, but she felt the familiar power that come from it nonetheless. She found it easier to keep her eyes shut and see the crowd of years ago. Her mother and father were present, youthful and without wear, sitting as close as they could to the stage. At that age, she had no awareness of the possible repercussions of having her ears show in public, but like today, she didn't much care for anything more than the fun she was having. She would stand in a daze, watching the men and women of that musical group play their songs that sounded wonderful to her but held no subsurface meaning at the time. Even now, she could practically hear her parents laugh as she ignored them and focused on the warm, jovial tones. Every year, she acted this way due to the joy she felt from the songs and from the fact that these people would spend time they could have used for themselves to play for the benefit of others. Now she and Yang were in a similar (albeit, more dire) situation, thus creating a bond between her and those on the stage in regard to their commitment to the safety and care of others—Yang's care for her and her care for Yang.

She felt the relatively flat ground they walked on change into an incline. Now she knew they had passed the area where the others were sitting because the only hills that were anywhere close to the stage were at the edge of the tree line that surrounded this field. For this, she opened her eyes and saw a single tree atop this hill before looking back at the crowds and the stage. They weren't too far away, she thought; the music was still clearly audible and the sight she was now given was admittedly better than what she saw as a child. She looked back to the tree and forced her legs to work again. It took some effort, but soon enough their pace increased to the point that they reached the old tree nearly instantly.

Blake was implored to sit first and she did so without argument. Yang followed soon after and the two leaned against one another with the tree at their backs as they watched the band continue to play. Now that she was able to sit again, Blake found that all the ailments that afflicted her—her dizziness, headache, and lack of hearing, sight, and care—began to quickly fade away. Yang put an arm over her shoulder and pulled her over so that her head rested atop the young Faunus'. This arm moved downwards so that the hand could rub Blake's arm. "Come on," Yang whispered, "you haven't finished yet. Keep drinking." Had the circumstances been different, Blake would have perceived this encouragement as similar to advisement given to a child who did not know any better. However, Yang was genuinely concerned for her wellbeing and she knew this.

"Yang," she said, finding it easier now to speak without interwoven bitterness, "I'm fine. That wasn't heat stroke, it was…" She didn't want to burden her partner with an explanation of why she suffered from vertigo and thus chose not to, sighing to change the topic. "I'm fine now. Thank you for the water."

This allowed Yang to smile. "If you say so," she hummed. This was followed by a lengthy silence. Blake felt that this wasn't caused by awkwardness or excessive thought; they were simply listening to the music and letting their ears adjust to the distant sounds. When Yang began tapping a finger against her leg to the beat of the song, Blake leaned into the hold, understanding that she didn't need to watch the band play to hear the song correctly. Instead, she took in Yang's presence and smiled for the first time in what felt like hours. Yang hummed again. "Sorry I made us miss their first song."

Blake shook her head, finding that her headache and dizziness had just about cleared. "Don't worry. This is still their first song of the night."

"Still?" Yang exclaimed. Blake laughed quietly as she nodded, knowing that Yang was back to her regular personality now that she no longer needed to uphold the overly concerned demeanor. She groaned, seemingly playfully. "Songs are supposed to be three to five minutes long. What amateurs."

"Usually, if someone calls a person an amateur, they would have some experience in the field. What experience do you have?" Listening to this music while conversing with her girlfriend was surprisingly an enjoyable experience. When she was a child, she never talked to anyone while the band was playing, but now she could see why the crowds below continued to speak to one another in respectfully hushed tones.

"Please. You don't have to play an instrument to know how music works. I think I've heard enough to know a thing or two." She moved her hand up to absent-mindedly run her fingers through Blake's hair, an action that made the Faunus close her eyes and warm to her partner's touch. "Why?" she asked. "Do _you_ play anything? Do you think you know better than me too?"

Blake ignored the challenge that would have led to a contest of who could tease the other more. She had recovered fairly quickly, but she was not yet ready to combat Yang's conversational nature. Instead, she hummed, "I used to." This led to another comfortable silence as the two simply held each other and listened to the music. It was odd but not at all wrong to Blake. She hadn't read of any such situation in a book before but she knew it was not unique to her experience. Still, she focused on getting comfortable with Yang.

A couple minutes would pass until Yang spoke next. What she said had no teasing edge to it nor curiosity that could spur a further conversation. "Thanks for inviting me. This turned out to be more fun than I expected." Yang turned her head to look at the Faunus and Blake could feel her warming Aura swell. "You're the best, Blake, you know that, right?" Blake could control neither the blush nor smile that spread across her face. The only response she could give was a shake of her head. No, she thought, that commendation did not belong to her, but her partner instead. She felt Yang kiss the top of her head before she was wrapped in another warm, hopefully loving hug. The two would remain like this, happily holding each other as they occasionally listened to the music for the few hours it would take for this concert to finish. At the moment, however, they simply reveled in each other's presences as this overture concluded.

* * *

Under the pale glow of a half moon, the stark, square plain of the parents' backyard proved to be as ideal a spot as Blake's father claimed it was. The tall trees of the region shortened at the far end, allowing a view from any part of this lawn to the place the fireworks were intended to fire. This was fortunate for the couple who lay beside one another on this grass, staring at the stars above that were now visible without the perennial glow of Vale's lights. Blake's parents were inside, choosing to leave her and Yang alone so that they could speak with each other instead. She was more than content with this. She cared for her parents, but the love that she held for Yang was incomparable. The two didn't feel the need to make contact with each other at the moment—they knew that they were together and alone—yet they still smiled giddily as they observed the nebulas above that glittered unabashedly without the pollution of light.

Yang raised a finger up and pointed to a spot in the sky. "And there's the…uh…there's the Great Squirrel." To pass the time, Yang had begun pointing out constellations that had yet to hold any validity to them. However, the conversation was light and had made the young Faunus more prone to laughing than she usually was. To prove this point, she giggled at the improvisation.

"And what is the story behind that?" she asked.

"Well," Yang strained, doing her best to quickly weave a story that would be tolerable to the well-versed girl. "Once upon a time, there was this squirrel—not a great squirrel, just an average, everyday squirrel—who—" She was cut off.

"That," Blake corrected.

Yang looked at her. "Who," she stated resolutely. "Squirrels are people too." Blake laughed, glad that this statement wasn't made into a joke about the Faunus people or the White Fang as it so easily could have. "As I was saying," Yang began again, nearly sounding offended. "There was this squirrel _who_," she stressed the word, "was running around the woods, doing its squirrel thing, when all of a sudden, he saw this magical berry. He knew it was magic because it was glowing and shining and he knew the moment he saw it that it was better than all the rest.

"Naturally, he wanted to eat it, but something told him that this berry was not meant to be eaten. I mean, who goes and eats something that's glowing? That's just not safe. Anyways, he decided he wanted to take a look at the berry first—he wanted to see if it was radioactive or not. With his squirrel Geiger counter that he totally had, he realized that the berry really was magic. Before anyone else could find it, he grabbed it in his mouth and tucked it away in his cheek. But!" Yang exclaimed, causing Blake's laughter to subside as the apparent plot twist was given. "The little squirrel wasn't going to get away with taking the magic berry that easily.

"When he tried to get back to his home on the other side of the woods, he found that two mean, old people stood in his way. Talk about a bad commute! He tried to hide but they knew he was there; they were ready to kill him and take the berry for themselves. But the little squirrel was not as great a fighter as they were and had nothing to defend himself with. He thought to himself, 'Maybe people aren't as mean as the other squirrels say they are. Maybe they can see reason and I can talk them into giving me the berry.' So he walked out of the bush he was hiding behind and met the mean, old people face-to-face.

"But the squirrel was a coward. As soon as he jumped out of the bush, the two people looked like they were going to attack. Instead of talking, he dropped the berry and ran, never to see the magical fruit again." Blake had her suspicions about what the story was inspired by for a majority of its telling, but now she was certain what Yang had been referring to. She couldn't hold her laughter and rolled onto her side to in a feeble attempt to do so anyways. "And why is this the story of the Great Squirrel instead of that cowardly squirrel?" Yang asked. "Because that squirrel will always be on the lookout for that one berry for the rest of his life. It was going to turn him into a superhero—he'd have a cape and save peoples' lives and he was going to be the Great Squirrel. But the two people messed it all up. What do you have to say for yourself, Blake?"

Blake made an effort to control her laughter before returning the smirk Yang was sending her. "I'd say he was only a squirrel."

"Ouch," the blonde grimaced, "cold." Suddenly, a distant, quiet _pop_ sent their gazes to the horizon.

The two moved to better positions to watch the faint dot in the sky burst into a blue flower of cascading stardust. Blake clutched at her knees as she sat upright while Yang simply propped herself up by placing her hands behind her. A second bloom of fiery Dust exploded and crackled, drawing the attention of both girls completely. Then began the deluge of fireworks, exploding no more than three at a time, but lighting the sky up nonetheless. As this consistent pace was set, Blake found that her current position was becoming uncomfortable, causing her to emulate how Yang was sitting. Fortunately, in the process of propping herself on her arms, her hand came in contact with Yang's. The two smiled at each other before their fingers became tangled. Their attention turned back to the show of simple blooms and occasional attempts at more complicated shapes, but never did they forget the hold their hands were in, causing the two to squeeze occasionally.

The occasional shape of a heart was seen amongst the tapestry of lights and caused the couple to laugh every time one appeared. The distant booms and pops were becoming so common that a beat was almost able to be found in the time it took one to be fired and another to explode. The show increased in intensity but could never quite match the sheer joy found on the faces of the two. Colors melded together and a distant cloud of smoke began to join the explosions, obscuring some but highlighting others. Then, a sight came that signaled the end of the display. The colors of the Kingdom of Vale flashed one by one, followed by the Kingdom of Mistral's. As the streaks of fire descended and dissipated, Blake knew that the fireworks had finally ended—too soon for her taste if she was to be completely honest.

However, there were no comments about the display, no jokes or conversation starters that could break the silence that had settled over the girls. The stars above had been obscured by the large amount of light that had pierced the shadows and left an ever-present glow behind. Yet neither girl paid attention to the horizon or what was above them any longer. Their heads turned to the side—toward each other—and they simply stared. Blake's breath caught in her throat but she did her best not to show any emotion. Yang was beautiful and caring and kind and selfless and warm and she was hers—hers alone and no one else could claim her. Yang was hers and she was Yang's and she loved her dearly. As if to ease the tension the situation, Yang pulled her hand from Blake's and moved it up to her cheek. It was a very sudden and surprising action, but Blake melted to the touch without much thought. The hand was warm and it was Yang's.

Did it matter if she was human? Did it matter that she was another girl? Did it matter that she was supposed to be her partner for the coming years and that she was obligated to keep her safe? Absolutely. It all mattered and in this culminating moment of existential actualization, Blake knew for a fact that these three variables—only the figurative tip of the iceberg of reasons why she was with Yang—were why her relationship with the blonde was so very incredible. She warmed to the touch of the palm that brushed against her cheek, moving closer as to goad its owner into continuing the gentle motions. Her breathing became blissfully rapid as she stared at those shimmering, lilac orbs that smiled back in kind.

Tears bordered her vision. She was not sad at all; rather, she was happy, hopeful, nervous—in love if she was to use her newest revelation—and these tears were the exultant result of these emotions. She felt so safe and so wonderfully detached from every being other than her partner and she could only rejoice in the closeness they shared. To think that this Faunus girl who had been previously so aversive to personable contact would let this exuberant human be so close to her would otherwise be irrational. Perhaps it was, but what is love if not irrational at times? There was certainly nothing irrational about the fluttering Blake felt in her chest as Yang's subtle breaths blew across her face.

The two were so close together that their noses frequently brushed against each other. Yet it did not matter to either, for they were far too involved in their affectionate staring contest to notice that they were subconsciously moving even closer. Neither girl had been the instigator of this motion, but had they been aware of it as it was happening, it was doubtful they would argue against this closeness. It felt as though there was something on Blake's upper lip. Perhaps a hair had fallen at an inopportune time, causing her to become semi-conscious of the event taking place. She could see how close Yang was. It took her a moment to understand what was happening, but when she did, she found herself uncharacteristically blushing and afraid. She loved Yang but was unsure if she was loved back. It should have been obvious to her, but she didn't want to assume. However, she did not fight the motion and was pulled back into her happy, subconscious stupor that pushed them forward into the action. She knew where Yang was and saw that her partner's eyes had drooped somewhat. Her mind recalled memories of books and films she had seen and thusly emulated Yang's actions. She felt that foreign feeling previously described spread to her lower lip before she knew that they were technically kissing.

Seemingly at the same moment, they both realized this technicality and tossed aside their inhibitions. The hand on Blake's cheek pulled her closer so that their lips could connect better. Blake clutched feebly at whatever she could, finding Yang's shoulder and waist eventually before pulling her closer as well. The kiss itself was fairly rudimentary and inelegant in its execution, but the emotions behind it were very complex and very fervent. Instantly, Blake basked in the feeling. Not only did it feel right—appropriateness and selflessness were discarded as soon as their lips had touched—everything about it was amazing. The feeling of Yang reciprocating this emotion made her happy beyond belief, causing a few stray tears to fall from the corners of her eyes. Almost immediately, the gloved hand on her cheek caught a few of them and dried her eye with her thumb. She loved Yang at this moment so incredibly much that words escaped her.

This action continued for a few seconds that paradoxically felt too short while seeming like wonderful hours at the same time. After these seconds, the two pulled away to catch their breath but never did they release the holds they had each other in. Their breaths were ragged and shallow but the look in their eyes was that of jubilant excitement. The blonde's hair had begun to glow, casting a light across the yard and warmth into the young Faunus' heart. Yang let out a short, happy laugh and was followed soon after by Blake. These short laughs were the only barrier between the kiss and the thoughtful silence that came after. She had really kissed Yang. Blake felt no compunction or consternation, only love. It was still hard to believe, but she had kissed Yang. She had kissed Yang and Yang had kissed her. It was amazing and her mind raced to find positive adjectives to describe it. However, all of her attention focused on her partner as she spoke. "Best birthday ever," Yang breathed with a lopsided grin.

Suddenly, Blake was confused. Her thoughts shifted away from how she loved Yang to decoding her simple, three-word phrase. "What did you say?" Blake had relatively composed herself; she was still smiling, but she was unsure of the meaning of what had come from the blonde.

Yang's brows raised in alarm. "Umm…" she hummed, obviously stalling for time or an excuse. "Best girlfriend ever?"

"Yang," Blake insisted, donning a much more serious expression and losing her smile completely, "what did you say?"

Yang winced, clamping her eyes shut as Blake backed away from her. It took a few seconds before she rapidly said, "Best birthday ever."

Blake sat back and simply stared at her girlfriend, coming to terms with this revelation. It didn't make sense to her at first, but it certainly did now that she could think about it. She was older than Yang by almost a year but not completely, otherwise they would be in separate classes. This would mean her birthday was before her own in autumn but after Ruby's in the spring. This thought then led to the memory of the conversation she had walked in on a week ago. Ruby had been attempting to force Yang into telling someone about something lest that someone become upset. Now Blake knew that she was that someone and Yang's birthday was that something. She looked at her partner, confused by why she would keep this information private. She was her partner and girlfriend; this was information she should be expected to know but hadn't been told yet. Blake continued to stare, thinking of what she could do in this moment. An idea came to mind and she immediately stood.

"Blake, wait!" Yang reached out. "Please don't be mad. I just didn't want you to worry about it."

The Faunus shook the hand off and said firmly but not aggressively, "Just stay here. I will be back." She then moved off towards the house at a brisk pace, leaving Yang alone in the backyard to become regretful and frustrated.

Yang had to ask herself if it would have been so hard to tell Blake about her birthday earlier. Ruby had been right, she thought. She should have told her something akin to, "Hey, Blake! My birthday's on the third of July, but you don't have to get me anything! I just want to spend time with you is all!" Of course, she hadn't and now Blake was furious with her. Would this be their first argument as a couple? Yang hoped not. Blake was smarter than her and she couldn't bring herself to hurt the Faunus emotionally or otherwise. Yang groaned as she picked at the grass in front of her. She still felt the touch of Blake's lips against her own but now the soft sensation stung with the thought of her partner now regretting the action. Would Blake leave her too? On second thought, she couldn't; they were partners and were bound to protect each other. But this was an even more frightening thought. This bond meant that Blake could leave her while always being close enough to be vindictive whenever she wanted. To some degree, this was understandable. Blake deserved better—she deserved someone who could make her happy every second of the day and it seemed to Yang that she was unable to fill that role. Blake had been the first person she had felt this way for and now she was leaving like all the others. There was something different she saw in Blake, something perhaps permanent. After all this time, it would have been a welcome change of pace. Yang sighed. Maybe it was for the best. Of all the people in the world, she knew that Blake most deserved to live without burdening constraints. She thought that it would probably be better for her partner if they separated as she thought they would. Maybe Blake could be happier and find someone who wouldn't lie to her.

The blonde's self-destructive thoughts were interrupted by an unexpected, quiet footstep in the grass behind her. She didn't have time to react before she heard Blake kneel down and say, "Hold still." Being afraid of upsetting her further, Yang did as she was told and stiffened so that Blake could continue with whatever it was she was doing. She felt her hair pulled away to rest on what she believed was Blake's arm. Then she became confused because her scarf was pulled away as well, coming off entirely and being placed somewhere by her partner. Blake peered over her shoulder but Yang didn't so much as glance at what she was doing even when she felt something cold come in contact with her chest. Blake leaned away, did something behind her back, and allowed the mane to fall as Yang felt a new weight around her neck. She only looked at it once Blake leaned over her shoulder and kissed her cheek before whispering, "Happy birthday, Yang."

Blake watched her girlfriend look down at the necklace and immediately glow once more. Her face shifted immediately from tense to elated. "Oh my God! Blake!" Yang spun around to face her, gripping the pendant gingerly. "Blake, it's beautiful!" The toothy, unrestrained smile made Blake immediately happy for accepting Weiss' assistance. Yang's gaze alternated between the necklace and the girl in front of her, allowing that prideful feeling to well within the Faunus once more. She had not been upset with Yang too much. It was troubling to learn about her birthday this late in the day, but she had the information now and she even understood why Yang wanted to keep it from her, even if she did not agree with it. Yang's excited look turned puzzled as she looked to Blake. "Wait. So you're not mad at me?"

Blake smiled warmly and shook her head. "Never," she said simply.

Yang's grin widened immensely. "Thanks, Blake." This was all she said before she leaned towards her partner to steal a kiss. Blake had no argument against the idea (after all, she needed the practice) and thusly leaned in as well to accept the short, sweet action. She doubted she would grow tired of the sensation or taste as it was all incredible—leagues better than she originally hoped it would be. It was able to convey her thoughts into actions far better than she could into words. It was Yang and it was her and in that moment of loving attention, she knew she wanted to say it. "Best birthday ever," Yang whispered as soon as they disconnected.

But Blake could not say it. She wanted to but she didn't know if her partner felt the same way she did, causing her to not say, "I love you, Yang." However, she knew now that Yang's feelings for her were as true and hermetic as her own, even if her emotions could not be classified as "love" just yet. For this reason, she simply basked in the warmth of her girlfriend, knowing that they would reach a day when she could say it. Today was not that day. Today was about Yang, not her—her partner deserved all the fun she had today. The two continued to stare at each other, outwardly excited about their relationship's progression. Blake was not disappointed at her inability to say the phrase, being content to be in Yang's presence at this time.

They would remain this way for a few minutes, unaware of the world around them, until a cool, almost cold breeze flowed past them. This allowed Blake the opportunity to see the result of her gift. Aside from the already heartwarming smile, Yang made the relatively simple jewel shine. Blake could not describe it, but she felt that the necklace looked right on Yang. Of course, she felt that her girlfriend could make anything look attractive, but this necklace fit. Perhaps it was the evident pride she had in wearing it or the similarity in color between her regular attire and the gold and amber of the jewelry. It fit perfectly, Blake thought. She looked up to find her sunny partner with a surprisingly somber expression. She did not look sad or angry; more so, she seemed troubled.

Blake could only speculate about what concerned her partner, but as soon as Yang looked to meet her gaze, she said, "Blake, I'm sorry about making you sick earlier."

This matter had already been dealt with and Yang had made her amends. Blake would have thought that this apology was unnecessary, but the conviction and confidence burning in those lilac eyes told her that this was necessary for the blonde. "Yang, it's all—" She was cut off by Yang adamantly shaking her head.

"Blake, I don't want to hurt you again. You warned me about not spinning the teacup too fast and I didn't listen. I mean, I promised I'd slow it down, but look how that turned out. I didn't keep my promise and I'm really sorry." A silence lingered to let the words take effect.

Surely the emotion shown was of care between partners, not what Blake fantasized it could have been. Blake knew that she had been in no state to communicate when Yang apologized before, but she had already forgiven her. There was not much else that needed to be said on the matter. Blake had suffered from a moment of vertigo, Yang had helped her, and she had recovered soon after because of this help. However, Blake was wrong in thinking that there was nothing left to be said. "Blake," Yang began, taking a moment to correctly phrase what she was about to say. The next words that came out of her mouth were said in such a boldly introspective, unsure tone that sincerity could not be argued against. "Blake, I think I love you." She didn't hesitate in her speech but still seemed to contemplate the statement as she said it. Nevertheless, the three words were there and shocked Blake into immobility.

In all the time she had spent thinking about how and when she would say the phrase herself, Blake had not once entertained the possibility of Yang saying it first. It was an absurd thought to the Faunus. She was certain that her partner's affections were still simple admiration and attraction as anyone should have after two weeks in a relationship. Now Blake knew she was loved and could not begin to express her gratitude let alone move. Her concerns were washed away and her hopes were validated in three words. She knew she was staring at Yang with a flat expression but there was nothing she could do to change her external demeanor. Internally, a whirlwind of positive emotions was taking precedence over every other function. Her heart rate increased, her eyes widened, and her ears stood on end. However, Yang did not seem to pay attention to these effects. Her burning, pleading gaze kept Blake's attention as she continued.

"I know we've only been together for a few weeks, but…I don't know. It just about killed me seeing you that way after the teacups. I wanted to do something to make you feel better instantly but I knew that there was nothing to do except be by your side. Blake, it killed me to see you that way—angry, off-balance, and…just not you. Blake, I didn't want to walk away from you to get the cotton candy. I thought that you would have come with me and I guess I thought wrong. And when I told you about my birthday, I thought you were mad at me. Blake, I hate it when you get mad. You're not you and it kills me to see you upset like that. Blake, I never want to see you in pain again. You're the nicest, smartest, most considerate person I know." During her speech, Yang's smile had become somewhat sad and reflective, but now it shined brightly. "So, yeah. I think I do love you, Blake."

The young Faunus could neither think nor move. She began to lose sight of Yang as she came to terms with the confession. She had been wrong about Yang's emotions, but that had happened before so it was not anything new. The degree by which she was wrong was startling, however. So, Yang loved her? She did not find the idea hard to believe, merely hard to accept. She did not doubt her partner, but instead doubted reality. Was this all a bad nightmare? It felt as though it had been the sweetest dream so far. If she was to suddenly wake, she felt as though her world would come crashing down around her and mock her for thinking so optimistically.

"Blake?" Hearing Yang's voice again let her know that she was not dreaming and that the paradoxically soft and calloused hand atop her own was thankfully real. Blake shook off the daze she had been stuck in as Yang asked, "Are you all right?" Blake's neutral expression steadily brightened to a smile that could rival any of Yang's. Before the blonde could react, Blake pushed forward and embraced the girl in the most accepting and uncharacteristically gleeful hug she could, knocking both of them from their upright positions. Yang asked once more, but with a tinge of hope in her voice, "Blake, are you all right?"

The girl in question nodded into Yang's shoulder perhaps a bit too enthusiastically. She did not need to say anything in return. She loved Yang and was certain the perceptive blonde knew this already. Yang laughed happily as she returned the sudden embrace. Blake felt that she did not need to say it back to prove her acceptance of the sentiment. However, she had found confidence and did so anyway. She whispered back, "I love you, Yang."

The Belladonna family's backyard was alight as though the sun beamed down upon it. For all intents and purposes, it could be said that the sun did shine as Yang's happy glow eliminated all shadows in the area. The two would remain this way amidst the Sierran woods, simply giggling and sighing and not saying much of anything as they enjoyed each other's company. Time would be lost on the couple; hours would turn to minutes and before they knew it, they fell asleep in the embrace out of exhaustion from the day. Blake did not care about their sleeping location, thinking that Yang's warmth coupled with the calm atmosphere make for a suitable locale. Yet it was the starlit sky that made this place fitting. Had it not been for a night like this where she could look up at the stars with her partner, it is doubtful that any of this could have happened.

* * *

Fun fact: that final segment was written while I was taking a short break from writing chapter four way back when. Of course, I had to revise it and ensure that it fit with the current plan I have for the story (the plan that has changed in slight ways since chapter four) and that it fit this chapter, but I'd like to think that it held up fairly well. There are a few moments in all of my chapters that I cannot seem to become calloused to during the editing process, evoking pauses so that I can appreciate (rather, become enthralled by) certain sentences or scenes. However, the entire ending to this chapter, from the final line break to the last word, had that effect on me. I hope it came out right and that my self-confidence wasn't blinding me.

If you felt as though Blake's internal discussions about the unnamed characters' views on same-sex relationships and human-Faunus relationships were short and left much to be desired, I can assure you that this was my intent. This chapter was not meant to describe these points with logical finality, but was instead to act as prelude for discussions in the story to come. There is an order of priority that needs to be understood when choosing what to write about. The story's progression and structural integrity takes precedence over societal messages and presented ideologies. This is not to say that these messages will be foregone; rather, they will be discussed at a time and to an extent that is appropriate. This chapter was about the happiness that Blake and Yang could find with each other, not the criticisms other characters may give them for it.

Before I move on to the announcements, I would like to thank you all for your acceptance of Blake's parents as at least tolerable characters. Their absence for the majority of this chapter was necessary for the purpose of narrative focus, but I hope that I have characterized them at least decently. I will tell you now so that you can set your expectations for this act's pacing accordingly that the parents will have a greater role in the next chapter. As I said before, this chapter was about Blake and Yang alone. To include the parents past what was necessary would have detracted from the chapter.

Now, for the announcements. Last chapter, I wrote that I was going to host a live stream wherein I would talk about _Valence_. For those who missed the live stream, I apologize, but the recording I have of it is unusable due to copyright restrictions (I had music playing in the background of the stream.). However, I recorded a video covering almost everything I talked about in the live stream and have posted a link to it at the top of my profile. I must warn you that the video is over forty minutes long and I apologize in advance if I am not who you expected me to be, but I hope some insight can be gleaned into the story's creation. If you do not wish to hear me speak, there is a link to the transcript in the video's description and on my Tumblr.

There were a couple more things that I said on the live stream that I left out of the video only because I felt it would be opportune to post them here instead. The first announcement was that I am planning on writing a series of five one-shot/short stories to coincide with the main story of _Valence_. These short stories will focus on the times when Ruby and Weiss are left alone by their teammates and will show how their relationship grows in small bursts. These stories are still in their planning stages and I have yet to figure when I will have time to write them. I am almost certain that each story will be about as long as a chapter of the main story, so this creates a dilemma with scheduling. However, the stories are being planned and are making decent progress. I hope that those of you who came for White Rose development enjoy this announcement.

My second announcement was that I am compiling an e-book version of _Valence_ to benefit those whose mobile experience with this story has been less than satisfactory. This e-book would include all of _Valence_ (sans author's notes) as well as the aforementioned short stories. However, I would not expect this to be released any time soon as I need to first finish _Valence_, finish the short stories, and edit them all at least once more.

Once again, thank you all for reading. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and that it achieved the desired effect. Stay safe and stay tuned.


	12. Chapter 12: Library of Shadows

Welcome back!

I feel as though these beginning author's notes are decreasing in importance, but this is probably for the best as it decreases the distance between you and the story. However, I should give a warning before this specific chapter begins. As with the disparity between chapters six and seven, this chapter will have a different tone than chapter eleven. The contrast should be expected, but this warning is to set the expectations for those who may believe that the fluff of the last chapter will carry on far into this chapter.

With this said, I hope that you enjoy chapter twelve of _Valence_.

* * *

Chapter 12: Library of Shadows

"Yang," Blake yawned contentedly, neither fully awake nor truly needing her girlfriend's attention at the moment. The name simply resonated with her and she desired to say it while she pulled herself closer to the form that was decidedly not a pillow. It was only because of a cool morning's breeze that the young Faunus had been roused from her wonderful slumber. Not once had their outside sleeping location factored into any form of discomfort because her of partner's aura that had protected them long into the night. She loved Yang and knew that she was loved back, judging by the strong, warm embrace she was wrapped in. After the events of last night, she couldn't help but grin affectionately into her partner's shoulder, silently thanking and appreciating everything Yang stood for. Yang. How Blake adored the woman who held her tight and accepted her—the former stray—faults and all. She did not want to open her eyes yet as she was too content with her current position, but the sun had begun to rise and had forced them open.

The first sight she was met with was of Yang's shoulder. She could see a few strands of flaxen hair in her vision, but her sight was mostly trained on the thin, gold chain that rose and fell with its new owner's slow breaths. Blake could not be indifferent at that moment nor could she force a frown or neutral expression after Yang had said those three words. It was still strange to her, being in this position, relationship, and state of mind. She was not used to this happiness—perhaps at one point she had, but not since joining the White Fang—but smiled nonetheless. She trusted Yang, enjoyed simply being beside her, and loved her; she loved her jokes, her attitude, her outlook, and her warm, sunny disposition. The White Fang had taught that positivity would be hard to find until the world met their standards, but Blake was happy now—she thought the moment and company to be perfect—and believed that Yang felt similarly, judging by her continued wear of the necklace. Of course, the blonde did not have a moment to herself to remove the jewelry last night, but Blake knew that she would have kept it on regardless. She still could not believe her partner felt the way she did. It was incredible, astonishing, and as though it was Yang's gift back to her. The young Faunus nearly laughed, thinking that it was yet another instance of her girlfriend being selfless at a time that she did not need to be. Blake happily watched Yang's unconscious expression and unwitting smile as she brushed a stray bang away from her partner's face.

Her gaze eventually moved to the sky. The bleak, icy grey of the overcast atmosphere told her that the hour was not as early as she would have liked, but there was still the possibility of sneaking back into the house. Her parents seemed fairly tolerant of their relationship for the most part, but the young Faunus believed that any parent who saw his or her child being held by another as they slept under the stars would likely believe their actions to be less innocent than they actually were. Her mother was certainly the type to overanalyze a situation and her father would spot even the slightest detail that might alter his appraisement for better or worse. Blake understood what their situation looked like and was slightly afraid.

However, one look at the peaceful expression of her usually energetic, upbeat partner made Blake's frown disappear entirely. There was nothing wrong with their situation at all; everything was as right as it could ever be. Unfortunately, she was certain that her parents would think differently, even her father who readily supported their relationship. Blake did not want to extinguish her partner's comfortable demeanor, but she knew that they would have to move into the house before her parents awoke. She was torn between falling asleep again in Yang's arms and waking her, but quickly understood the rationality behind the latter action and made her decision. Before she began, Blake would look at the exuberant youth in this calm state just one more time. All she could think about was how she loved this woman as she put a hand to the blonde's cheek and emulated last night's action of Yang's thumb catching her tears. Yang had said that she never wanted to see Blake in pain again and the Faunus would try her hardest to keep anything from happening to her partner as well. She moved the hand to her arm, lightly shaking it as she whispered, "Yang."

The girl in question surprisingly reacted to this first attempt, shifting and loosening the hold as she mumbled, "Good morning, beautiful." Blake smirked, not once taking offence at the blush that had spread across her cheeks. Even in a mostly unconscious state, Yang still had a way with words. It would take a few moments before the blonde's eyes would flutter open, but once they did, the partners found themselves locked in yet another impromptu staring contest. As amber gazed into lilac, the two seemed to wonder the same things: Did last night actually happen? Did I really say that? Did she say that, too? Yang was obviously happy, but her grin was not as powerful as it could be. Perhaps she had this fear of rejection as well and was wondering whether or not she would be pushed away after what had been said and done the night prior. This is what Blake thought would happen, but she was caught off guard by Yang's hesitant greeting of, "Hey."

"Hey," Blake responded in a manner that was equally as awkward. It felt as though they were children meeting each other for the first time. They were girlfriends, they had kissed, and they had said "I love you." How they had managed to regress to such an unsure point was beyond the young Faunus' present understanding, but she was timid nonetheless. They would not say anything for a while, simply watching one another's expressions for any small, telling changes. Blake was happy to make this eye contact with her partner, but believed that last night had been perhaps too good to be true. Suddenly, she saw something change in Yang's eyes; her expression did not shift, but her gaze somehow turned from curious to inquisitive—she was asking if last night had happened. Blake, being unsure herself, gave a similar look in kind. It took but a moment for the couple to understand that last night truly had occurred, causing Yang to lose any appearance of tiredness for a colossal smile. Blake felt that her own smirk conveyed happiness well enough, but Yang's expression was excited, jubilant, and outright loving. The arms wrapped around the Faunus tightened as she was pulled closer to her partner, causing her small laugh.

Yang's aura flared, ridding the area around them of any pesky breeze and allowing benevolent warmth to fill its place. "For a second there, I thought all of that was a dream. I'm glad you're here, though. Thanks, kitten."

Blake did not know specifically what she was being thanked for, but accepted the sentiments nonetheless, nuzzling closer to show her appreciation. She was aware of the eventuality of convincing the blonde to sneak back into the house, but she just wanted to bask in the reality of the situation for the moment. She felt Yang slowly rub her back while her other hand held her in place. She, herself, absent-mindedly played with the mass of golden hair behind her partner's back. Yang happily sighed—an odd action for her which was normally replaced by a short laugh or a grin. "You know," she began, moving the hand that had been rubbing the Faunus' back into her hair, "you really are the best. I'm not gonna try to say anything poetic or anything 'cause I'm still out of it, but," she was interrupted by a yawn, but powered through it, "but I want you to know that what I said last night still holds true." Blake closed her eyes again, smiling warmly all the while, feeling Yang hold her close to convey the sentiments more than adequately.

She was loved and she loved back in kind. "Thank you," was all the uncharacteristically affectionate Faunus could manage to say. She felt the hand running through her hair scratch the area behind her ears. Normally, she loathed the action, thinking that anyone who did this was purposefully forcing her into an unfortunately submissive state, but at this current juncture with her girlfriend, she was relaxed. Yang wouldn't hurt her and she knew this for a fact. In that moment, Blake lost all sense of purpose and time as she simply melted into the ministrations. They would remain in this state for some time, Blake lying against her warm partner while Yang kept the all of her attention on the Faunus' ears. When the blonde eventually ceased her actions, Blake was slowly able to recall what she had woken her partner up for. It took a fair amount of effort to reset her priorities, placing security over comfort, before she asked, "Yang?"

"Yeah?" the girl whispered, neither completely awake nor alert, but entirely focused on her inquiring girlfriend.

"We need to head inside before my parents wake up. I'd rather them not find us out here like this. Even if we aren't doing anything wrong, I still don't think they will like the idea of us sleeping together." Yang pulled away and raised her eyebrows in mock surprise. Initially, Blake thought the expression voiced indifference towards her parents' thoughts, but quickly found that the surprise had come from her unfortunate phrasing. Blake shook her head and corrected, "I don't think they would like the idea of us sleeping with each other." Yang quietly laughed—a relative guffaw for the tired state she was in. This caused the Faunus to send an impatient look her way, halting the noise and bringing the blonde's attention back in full. "Yang, I'm serious. My parents probably believe what you're laughing at as fact—or they will if they see us out here like this."

"So, what are we going to do? Break into your own house?" Blake sighed, questioning the morality of the unavoidable action but understanding its necessity nonetheless. Yang hummed in acceptance. "It's always a party with you, isn't it?" She yawned, "All right, I'm game. How do you want to do it?"

"Quietly," Blake simply said. She hoped her partner would accept and play her part well. She trusted Yang, but far too many times had the blonde proven that silence was not her forte.

Yang unlatched an arm from the Faunus so that she could roll onto her back and stare lazily at the overcast sky. "Well, I never said your parties were always fun. They're more box socials and book club meetings than raves." She laughed at her own joke. "But we'll do it your way. Kicking in your parents' door might not leave the best impression."

Now it was Blake's turn to raise an eyebrow. "Was that supposed to be a pun?" She would not be angry if it was the case—far from it, actually. Blake was simply curious if Yang had realized the joke she had made in her latter statement.

Yang turned to face her girlfriend, a tired look in her eyes. "Blake, I wish I was awake enough to know what you're talking about. But I'm not, so I'm just gonna say 'Yes', take credit for it, and try to grasp how early it is." Her gaze returned to the grey clouds before she sighed. "Sorry, Blake. I'm up for breaking and entering and all that, but don't ask me to think about anything. All I can think about right now is how you are able to wake up this early."

Blake rolled onto her back as well, the arm wrapped around her waist continuing to hold her close. The blanket of clouds above floated gently and gradually—noticeably if one were to pay attention yet invisibly to Blake whose focus rested on her girlfriend. She waited a moment for the unintentional question Yang had asked to diminish in necessity. "If we are going to do this, we need to move soon. Are you ready?"

"As I'll ever be," Yang sighed. At this, Blake stood, quickly finding her balance and looking back at her supine partner. "Help me up," the girl asked. Blake rolled her eyes and extended a hand which was immediately accepted. Yang was pulled up with no small effort on either girl's part, but once she was, she smiled. Blake smiled back before she was suddenly wrapped in a hug. "Thanks, Blake. No matter what happens—if they find out that we didn't do anything or not—I'm gonna stick by your side. I like your parents, but if they get in the way of me and my Blakey…well, I might not like them as much after that."

On one hand, the statement was reassuring and sweet, but at the same time, Yang had all but promised that if the situation with her parents went awry then there would be some form of conflict. Blake doubted this conflict would be physical as Yang had a respectful integrity about herself, but if the conflict came in the form of conversation or argument, then the Faunus would have reason to fear for her girlfriend. Yang was smart enough, but not in the same way Lilian and Cole were. The blonde understood diplomacy and how to mollify a situation through conversation alone, but could not contend with the combination of logic, reasoning, pragmatism, and experience that her parents could bring. Blake's fears on this matter could not be said to be unfounded as she had yet to reach a point where her knowledge was able to surpass her parents'. It was this inability to adequately argue against the combined acumen of her mother and father that originally spurred her mistake in joining the White Fang. Individually, she had been able to best them in battles of wit and reason, but only after she had returned from an absence of ten years. She didn't expect to come into conflict with either parent, let alone both of them, but if Yang was to follow through with her claim of protectionism, then said conflict could plausibly occur.

Blake sighed. "Come on," she said, purposefully dismissing the defensive assurance and refocusing her girlfriend on their objective. Yang complied, slinging an arm over the shorter girl's shoulder for apparent assistance. It should be noted that Blake believed that Yang did not need assistance at that time and that the blonde was more than capable of standing on her own, yet neither girl could complain. Together, the partners moved from the lawn to the house's back door. As they went, they each brushed off a few stray blades of grass that had stuck to their persons; Yang had to even pull a few out of her hair, but did not seem discontented in the least. Before they reached the door, Blake disengaged from the tired, if not affectionate hold.

She expected her parents to have locked the house's doors—that is what they did when she was a child and what Yang did at her house every night. As such, Blake prepared herself to pick the door's lock. It was not a skill that she was proud of learning and had only used it twice when she was in the White Fang—once to reach a piece of intelligence in a locked room and once to reenter her own sleeping quarters. However, she still felt confident that she knew how to exploit a lock and moved to begin. It is a popular misconception that the first step in the lock-picking process is to retrieve the necessary tools or to evaluate the lock itself. Instead, Blake began by testing the door's handle and thankfully found that it turned, allowing her to open the door without incident. This was fortunate because she lacked any tool that would have aided her in her efforts and because this spared her the guilt of breaking into her parents' house.

With the door ajar, she looked back to Yang, motioning her to follow. The blonde blinked a few times, took a deep breath, and began to move as silently as she could. The two entered into the kitchen and found the room dark, spare the grey light that spilled in from the windows. From where she stood behind a counter, Blake could see that nobody was in the living room, but could only assume that the kitchen was in the same state. She looked to Yang, silently telling her to stay quiet once more before she nodded towards the doorframe that led into the living room. Yang returned the gesture, expressing agreement with the plan before they both moved forward. Unfortunately, a nonchalant "Good morning" alerted them to another presence in the room.

Sitting at the table in the kitchen's center was Blake's father, staring blankly at the window while occasionally taking a sip of coffee. He was not his regular, cheery self—nor should anyone be at this post-dawn hour—but he seemed alert and attentive, having spotted the two girls without having to turn his head. This validated Blake's fear of her parents seeing what she and Yang had done; if he believed that their simple slumber was something more, then her other fear would be realized. In a desperate attempt to appease the situation before assumptions could be rationalized or accusations could be made, Blake replied, "Good morning." This seemed to allow Yang to relatively relax and accept their current position.

Cole turned his head to his daughter, looking at her with appraising, yellow eyes. He did not smile nor did his expression give off any indication of happiness at this point in time; instead, he seemed to watch for even the smallest of telling insecurities or nervous habits. It was a very alarming situation to Blake as she had experienced this side of her father's personality only once before. He had always been the supportive, cheerful type who made her feel accepted, but when it came to her desire to join the White Fang, a more deductive, observant figure took the place of her warmer parent. His flat-yellow irises did express care, but through skepticism and patience rather than the immediate recognition Blake was used to. She felt stiff under his gaze, as though anything she did would tell him a story which did not occur. In an attempt to pacify the situation, she asked, "How long have you been awake?"

His eyes lingered on her for a second before moving to Yang. The blonde froze, her eyes widening in barely concealed fear. Eventually, he shrugged and looked out the window again. "About an hour," he hummed. Blake had to force her expression to stay neutral and not show any signs of shock. If he had been awake for an hour—and she was assuming that he had begun counting this hour once he reached the kitchen—then he most likely saw her and Yang laying together outside. If this was the case, it was possible that he could assume something had occurred. However, he spoke again. "Don't worry, you're not in any sort of trouble. Although, your mom _does_ want to go out for breakfast to discuss what happened."

They wanted to take her and Yang to a public place where any sort of unrestrained emotion would be considered irresponsible. Her parents had already strategized and this did not bode well in the young Faunus' mind. To Yang's credit, she seemed far calmer than Blake felt at the moment, being unreactive and still. It had been implied that her mother knew about "what had happened", likely causing some degree of dissent to take hold of her mind. This was surprising because Lilian had already informed Blake of how she would support whatever actions she chose because she was "her own woman" now. Unfortunately, full support had not been given for the relationship with Yang. Blake did not believe her mother hated Yang nor the relationship; rather, she disagreed with and doubted the relationship and this was the possible cause of her desire to head to a public location and discuss "what happened."

Of course, this could have been her parents' one final attempt to reconnect with Blake's life before she returned to Vale the day after. If this was the case, then the breakfast would be a somber one indeed. This was rationalized when Cole spoke again with a hidden tone of kindness shallowly buried beneath the neutral expression that seemed to pain him. "Go get changed. I'd bet sleeping out there wasn't the cleanest of experiences, so I can't fault you if you feel like you need to change into something else." Blake watched him for a moment, attempting to gauge his level of sincerity. Unfortunately, his expression remained statuesque, unchanging for everything other than the obvious discomfort he had about concealing his emotions. Her only way left to measure of his trustworthiness was to recall the time she had spent with him as a child—a single bad memory appeared amongst a sea of positive visions, forcing her to nod in acceptance before motioning Yang to move into the living room. "Take your time," he said. "We'll be ready to go when you are." At this, the couple left.

"Blake?" Yang whispered, losing all sense of tiredness in exchange for concern. "What was that about?"

"Come on." Now was not the time to answer as there was still the potential for her parents to hear them. "We'll talk upstairs." Yang frowned but nodded nonetheless. At some point during their short walk to the stairway, their hands connected. Blake was not sure if it was Yang's doing or if it was her own subconscious to blame, but the action eased a great deal of stress from her mind. Whatever was going on with her parents was disconcerting but Yang was with her and made the situation tolerable. They ascended together, neither allowing their bond to break until they reached the top of the steps. When this point was reached, Blake sighed. "Yang…" She did not know how to phrase the explanation without provoking her girlfriend's temper. Yang had stayed calm about most things this summer, but she had been perhaps over-protective—verging on hostile to others—in the past and had nearly promised to treat her parents similarly if a situation such as the one they were in now were to occur. She looked into her partner's eyes, silently telling her that something neither of them wanted to hear was about to be said. "Yang, I believe my parents are going to try to convince me to end our relationship."

Yang simply frowned. "Is this about your mom being worried about your name not being passed on?" Despite the apparent indignation, she was handling this news quite well.

Blake shook her head. "I don't know what's causing them to do this, but…" She felt as though she had something to say, but the thoughts fell away because of the cruel idea of her and Yang having to separate. They were her parents and though they held considerable leverage over her morality on the issue, she could not see past their presumed motives as being similar to the White Fang's at her time of departure. While the operations of the organization were incomparable in terms of morality to her parents' assumed forceful desire for her to find someone else in a relationship, it was the principle of not wanting someone else to control her actions and future for their own personal preference that upset her. She sighed again, choosing to say what was on her mind instead of what she had been trying to say before. "I don't want them to separate us. I don't want them to plant seeds of doubt in our mind or yell at you for our being together."

A hand was placed on Blake's shoulder, stopping her impending tirade. Yang's concerned look lingered. "I don't want to lose you either, Blake, and I'm not going to. We'll listen to what they have to say and argue if we have to but I'm not losing you. I know they're your parents and I'll treat them respectfully, but bowing's just not in my nature. And it's not in yours either, I don't think." She smiled, melting the fearful cold that burdened Blake's mind. "Everything's going to be okay. They can try to pull as apart, but I don't think they'll be able to. I'll never leave you, Blake. I promise."

Doubts blackened the mind of the young Faunus. They could try to fight back with their words and keep their integrity, but Blake believed that in the end they would fail in their endeavors just like the original White Fang had. However, her thoughts were interrupted by Yang suddenly moving closer and kissing her. The action lasted only a moment, but it was able to pull her back up from the shadowy abyss of hypothetical negativity. When Yang pulled away, Blake knew that her partner's conviction had no cracks in it and that they would remain together no matter what her parents had to say. "It's going to be all right," Yang assured. The kiss had bolstered Blake's confidence in the blonde and allowed her to smile. "They're your parents and I don't think they're going to risk losing you again. No matter what, you're not going to lose me and you're not going to lose them."

Yang's point in saying this, Blake believed, was to introduce the idea that the impending discussion was not a battle like she had been preparing for, but simply a discussion. Her mother was the type to speak figuratively, but seldom did she spin the connotations of a word to fit a threatening end. When her father said that they were going to "discuss" the situation, Blake believed that he had been quoting what her mother had said. If this was the case and her assumptions about her mother's manner of speech proved to be correct, then she could believe that they were not heading into a battle. Blake sighed. "Thank you," was all she managed to say.

"You're welcome." Yang grinned, destroying the somber, ponderous atmosphere that had settled over them. "Now go get ready. I've gotta pull some of this grass out of my hair so I can look presentable while you take care of whatever you have to. I'll be in my room if you need me." Yang winked as the hand that gripped Blake's shoulder dropped before she began to move towards the door opposite her partner's room. However, before she opened her door, she looked back. "Hey, are you going to need your jacket? It looks like it's going to rain out there."

So, Yang had brought her spare jacket with her? Furthermore, she was referring to it as Blake's? The young Faunus smiled but declined. It was a compelling offer, but her parents did not need any more subjects to talk about. She was calm about the situation, but feared the remaining possibility that could lead to her parents' outright denial of their relationship. Yet Yang had told her that they would continue to care for her and because of this, she was not afraid. "I'll be fine. A little rain won't bother me."

* * *

Antiquity was the apparent effect this restaurant desired to achieve and did so without the slightest of cracks in its illusory veil. Wooden walls, floorboards, and tables topped with kerosene lamps made this dimly lit establishment seem initially comfortable and warm but ultimately foreboding when coupled with the dour grey of the early morning and the disgruntled consciousness of the nameless masses. The faces of those around the four were obfuscated by flickering, uneven shadows created by the lanterns, leaving the many patrons to see only each other but hear everything around them. Despite her low-light abilities, Blake could only bear to see her partner and parents—her mother across from her, her father next to his wife, and Yang thankfully beside the young Faunus. None here were tired as proven evident by the small flame that burned between them, this fear beneath façades of hesitant sternness. Blake could not say that she was unafraid; she had been holding onto Yang's hand beneath the table so that she would not feel alone in this situation. Yang held on as well as she alternated her gaze between Lilian and Cole. This was not a battle, but Blake could not stop thinking as though it was.

Yang and Cole all but jumped in surprise when a waiter arrived to place their ordered drinks down. Blake and her mother, however, remained still and relatively calm. Two coffees, an orange juice, and a water were set down in front of the parents, Yang, and Blake respectively. Cole shooed him away afterwards, saying that he would be called over once they were ready to order and that he wasn't to approach until then. Blake's parents had brought them to this public place and had asked to be seated at the room's centermost table. Nobody was likely to see them in the dining area's darkness, but Blake could feel eyes being trained on her and she feared that those at the other tables had begun to presume who she was due to her Faunus traits remaining unbound. There were not too many people here, but they were a nameless, faceless group nonetheless and she was afraid. Fortunately, Yang was there and had managed to ease some of her discomfort with a squeeze of a hand.

Her mother and father looked to each other, silently conversing for a moment before they turned back to the young couple. "I believe it would be best to forego small talk and get right to our purpose in bringing you here." Lilian's gaze bored into Blake as she said this. "You are leaving tomorrow for Vale. This timeframe does not allow for much of what we could say to be instilled and be properly appreciated. Blake, Yang, we are concerned for you. We are concerned _about_ you."

Cole shifted in his seat and moved his hands to cradle the cup before him. "What your mother is saying is that we care for you and don't want to see you get hurt—either of you."

"Blake," her mother began, "you have been away for a very long time. Three days is hardly enough for us to learn who you have become, but it is what we have had to work with; and though our conversations during your visit have been rather enlightening, we are still unfortunately in the dark. Your entire early adult life is gone from us and we admittedly feel cheated. However, you are your own woman now and all we can do at this point is ask you to let us into your life once more. We are not asking you to stay in Sierra and are we asking you to give up your ways; rather, all we ask is that you allow us the peace of mind and reassurance we have been looking for since you left us."

Blake looked down at the table, trying to process this request. They were not asking her to give up her relationship with Yang, but they were asking her to reconnect with them. She thought that her obvious answer should have been an agreement of some kind, but she doubted that this would be appropriate. They were her parents but at the same time they were strangers to her. She had lived away from them longer than she had lived with them and while sentiments still existed, many of the bonds inherently formed between a child and her parents had been broken. She cared for them, admired them, and respected them as individuals, but could not bring herself to love them. Yet she was certain that they loved her and she knew that to disregard this fact would be wrong. They had a parental right to retain some form of contact and connection with her, but she was not entirely certain that either party would truly want this. "Sweetheart," her father called, bringing her gaze back up from the table, "we just want to know what happened and what went wrong. We don't expect you to come running into our arms or anything like that, but we'd like it if you just talked to us."

That had always been the problem, hadn't it? Lack of communication had forced her into joining the White Fang, leaving the organization, and had even caused numerous conflicts with her teammates simply because she could not bring herself to speak. Yang looked to her with an expression that was either pleading or concerned—whichever sentiment it proved to be, she could not tell. "Fine," Blake sighed. "What do you want to know?"

"Simply who you are," her mother answered. "But to learn this, we must have an idea of what you have done and where you have been. You must understand that we lack the perspective that you have and can only speculate so much. Our knowledge of you ended ten years ago and only returned once your school called us."

The latter statement momentarily piqued Blake's interest. It was two days after she had arrived in Sierra and she was still unsure of how her parents had found her after all these years. The brief mention of someone in Beacon calling them confused her. At this point, she could only assume that some member of the faculty had called a couple of months ago to inform her parents that their daughter's summer break was approaching. This assumption led her to believe that some correspondence had occurred between her parents and the school, eventually leading to their call to the sister's home. However, how the school had found her parents was still unknown as she had not supplied their names or address. Belladonna was not a common surname—for all she knew, the name belonged only to her and her parents—so it was likely some research into the kingdom's records could have found her parents. This raised the issue of an invasion in privacy, but now was not the time to debate this; her parents still expected information. "What do you want to know?" she repeated.

Her mother took a sip of coffee before initiating eye contact. "Why don't we begin with the most pressing issue of all?" Blake sighed. "The White Fang." It seemed to her as though the restaurant's patrons shifted uncomfortably in their seats at the mention of the organization's name. Whether or not this was true or if they could have heard Lilian was yet to be determined, but the subject made Blake somewhat uncomfortable regardless.

Yang tightened her brows, reacting to the words far more enthusiastically than the former member of the organization did. "Don't you think it's a little early to be talking about that? She won't even talk to me about that stuff and we've had to fight them."

Lilian's gaze turned to Yang, making it apparent that she intended to speak, but Blake squeezed her partner's hand first. "No, it's all right," the young Faunus said. "They deserve answers—they have _deserved_ answers—and so do you." She turned her gaze to the blonde. "Sooner or later, you're going to have to learn this, so why not now?"

"You know you don't have to do this, right? I'd be fine with not knowing."

"Yang," Blake pleaded, "this isn't about what I want. Being kept in the dark is painful and you know this, but being kept in the dark for as long as I have been away can destroy a person." The blonde's reactive frown was not out of disappointment, but out of uncomfortable acceptance. "You need to know this as much as they do."

Blake could only hope that her partner would understand why she was willing to entrust them with this knowledge. The information she had suppressed and repressed was at its best incriminating and at its worst able to evoke painful, crippling memories. Due to the pain that this information could cause, Blake did not take its dispersal lightly. Her parents deserved to know because they had raised her until the point that she left and because she did not want to keep them in a state of unknowing stagnancy such as she had been while in the organization. At a fundamental level, they were her parents—the only biological family she had—and they cared for her; they had every right to know. Yang's involvement was more for their future together than their past. If they were to fight together in the years to come, Blake believed that if anyone deserved to know who she was, it was her partner. This stance was only supported by her love for the girl. Yang continued to look critically at the young Faunus, before her expression dropped altogether. "Fine," she resigned.

With this said, Blake turned her attention back to her parents. "I am willing to tell you what has happened since I left, but I warn you that I doubt you will like what you hear."

"We could not have expected the opposite," stated Lilian.

The girl's amber gaze shifted to her father. He looked nervous despite the confident expression he forced. He nodded, accepting his daughter's warning before she asked, "Where would you like me to begin?"

"Well," Cole began, "why don't you start off from when you left?"

Blake looked back down at the table and sighed, "Okay." She felt Yang's hand grip hers reassuringly, making this story only just easier to tell. Without looking up to her parents, she began. "To be honest, I don't remember much of that night. I remember shouting at you and you telling me that I was 'just a child' and that it wasn't safe out there. I thought you were talking about the world the Faunus have to live in and how it wasn't safe to exist, let alone succeed, but I was mistaken. I was shouting propaganda—sayings and mottos printed on the flyers I had stacked in my room—but I never understood why. You seemed to be in the wrong and when you said that I wasn't allowed to leave, my urge to flee only became stronger. I know I probably should have stayed and spared some of the pain that would eventually be inflicted to me, but I cannot change that now nor would I want to if I had the chance."

Cole stared into his coffee, potentially as a means of distracting himself from the memories that he and his pained daughter shared. Her mother continued to watch her, giving no indication of a desire to speak. Yang, on the other hand, asked, "So, how did you get into the White Fang—like, how did you actually join them? You were what, eight at the time?"

"I…" Blake watched her mother's expression, knowing that it was likely to change after the stories she would be told. "I read about a White Fang outpost in the mountains and it turned out to be true. I tried to walk there, but I was young and not ready for the distance. I had to hitchhike to the outpost, but nobody was willing to drive close to it because they knew." Her mother's brows knitted, revealing barely concealed consternation on her part. "As to how I got to the outpost, I don't remember. All I know is that I slept on the way and awoke in the middle of nowhere with the man who had driven me pointing in the direction of the town where the outpost was located. I had to walk the rest of the way, but it was a manageable distance. When I reached the town, I realized why the White Fang had placed an outpost there.

"I guess they were there for the Faunus refugees from both Mistral and Vale—the ones who had fled to find safety from discrimination—because the amount of hate running through the crowd was…influential to say the least. They weren't bad people, not all of them. There were a few who were shameless murderers, but the people there were scared for the most part. It seemed to resonate with me, that fear. They were afraid for the same reasons I wanted to join the organization and it only made my decision all the more clear." Blake had begun to absent-mindedly draw in the condensation of her glass, always forming the pattern of three parallel lines. "As you said, I was eight years old, but I didn't think anything of it at the time. I had made it to that run-down shack they called an outpost by myself and I wanted to fight. Perhaps due to my fatigue, my will to fight manifested in a more physical sense than conversational, judging by how I dealt with the guards who tried to keep me out." She did not intend on describing the situation with the guards, fearing that what she could say would shock her parents and make them see her in a different light. However, her mother's gaze remained even and her father seemed somberly rapt because of this story. She sighed, knowing that they wanted to hear what happened even if she did not want to say it. "They tried to keep me out, telling me that I was too young, but I was tired and angry and I had seen the hate of the refugees. Somehow, I managed to break one of the guard's legs and the other's nose before I was knocked unconscious. I never wanted to hurt anyone, but…" She trailed off.

"But you had to," her father completed. "We all make mistakes, some of us worse than others, but that doesn't mean we're bad people because of it."

"That's exactly what I thought about the White Fang at first." His kind expression faltered before he returned to looking at the liquid in front of him. In this pause, Blake's unbound ears perked at the light pattering on the building's faraway windows. This new sound momentarily distracted her from the unfortunate recollection so that she could look to those around her. With the coming rain, the room had darkened, leaving the only helpful lights to be those meager flames in the dusty lanterns. The indistinct figures at the surrounding tables seemed tired and quiet—distracted if she was to be optimistic. Lilian had an odd look about her. It was appraising as per usual but she seemed as though she was struggling to accept some great truth. Cole, despite seeming more interested in distancing himself from the conversation, frequently looked to both Blake and Yang, watching their expressions until he found some telling change. It was likely he did not enjoy what he was hearing, but he was bearing with the discussion for his daughter's sake.

Yang had taken only a single sip of her juice since it had been delivered apparently troubled like everyone else. She didn't say anything during the elaboration, but communicated with Blake during her entire soliloquy that she was supported through the warmth of her aura and the grip of her hand. When the Faunus had remarked upon the injuries she had both given and sustained as a child, the grip changed. Blake did not know if it was out of amusement that would be expected from her partner or out of sober respect for an otherwise traumatic incident. Whatever the case was, Blake was thankful that she had reacted when her parents did not. It is not to say that she thought poorly of them, but she believed that their reactions were based more on parental principle than personal sentimentality which Yang had found over this past year. In this cold, dark environment, Yang's warmth and presence kept the normally reserved Faunus composed and willing to continue.

Before she began again, Blake made use of the water she had ordered. Speaking was not a problem for her, but speaking for as long as she had without pause could present difficulties later on, seeing as how she still had a great deal to explain. "When I awoke, I found myself on a cot in the outpost." She was about to go on, but realized the next subject she was to cover and shuddered because of it. "Apparently, because I put up such a fight, the guards thought it would be best to keep me prisoner, but when I awoke, I met the commanding officer of the outpost." She still remembered the officers' coats—their black coats when all the others wore white—and their swords. Swords were for the strong, they said. For those who could prove their worth in close-quarters, uncomfortable, personal combat. She pried herself from the thought and resumed. "I was told that I would fit well in the organization and that I had the spirit of no member he had ever seen despite me injuring his guards. He," she remembered his face, "told me that they would welcome me into their cause if I allowed him to train me. I didn't know what to think—I didn't know what to do because I was a prisoner without knowing the true meaning of the word—but I accepted." She remembered his horns.

"From that point, I learned how to debate and uphold the White Fang's ideals. I learned claims and concepts that would counter the ideologies of those against us. I learned how to read between the lines with purpose you could never instill in me." This was directed at her mother. "They taught me how to stand up for my…for their beliefs and how to defend myself. After they accepted me, I learned how I was able to incapacitate the guards. At ten, I learned infiltration and espionage techniques so that I could subvert our enemies. At thirteen, I was given a gun. When I was sixteen, I built my own and began my training in how to wield a sword."

Cole looked up at her. "They were training you to become a leader," he concluded.

How he had been able to come to this conclusion with the information given was surprising. Of course, he had been watching her, but this did not explain how he was able to connect her timeline with her conditioning. Unfortunately, the young Faunus did not realize the vehemence she had spoken against her training with. However he had figured this out, he was correct, causing Blake to nod. "When I joined the White Fang, I believed we would be protesting, speaking in forums, and sharing our rationale with the world. Do you remember the information I had on them before I left? All it talked about was either a gathering or a protest. I wanted to reason with people and express my thoughts through words. When he accepted me, I thought he would teach me how to do this effectively. I never wondered why they taught me how to defend myself and I did not question his logic when he handed me a gun. I thought that the operations and protests we went on were for peace or to acquire information that would further our rights.

"He led me to believe that we were peacefully helping our cause, allowing me to be the one to gather information and simply observe our unnamed enemies. Meanwhile, he and the others were destroying the foundation of the organization. I didn't realize that what they were doing was wrong until I was given a sword to train with. By then, I had already forsaken my beliefs."

Tears would not have been the appropriate for this story. Instead, Blake's free hand balled into a fist as she shuddered with frustration. The young Faunus did not initially react when Yang disconnected their hands to pull her and her chair closer so that a comforting arm could be placed around her. Cole seemed to focus on this display of care while Lilian asked, "Did you voice your opinion on the matter? Did you stand up for what you believed when the organization strayed from its original goal? Did you fail to realize that the White Fang is not a stable organization but a sinking ship that you voluntarily bought a ticket for? Did you not listen to what we said when you left us?" She seemed as though she was going to continue asking rhetorical questions, but a sudden wave of heat stopped her.

For a moment, the room was fully illuminated due to the momentary increased strength of the fires in the lamps. Both of Blake's parents looked to the light on their table, finding that its flame had quickly reduced to its regular size while the other patrons continued to look for the case of the flash. Blake turned to her partner, more concerned for her wellbeing than her own integrity. Yang was sending a scarlet glare Lilian's way as she growled, "She was eight. There was no way she could have known how bad they were. Give her a break."

Lilian did not so much as flinch as she returned with an even stare. "I am aware of this fact. However, I am not critiquing her past actions as those cannot be changed. Surely you must be aware of how she continues to defend the organization? Her speech is never absolute and fails when referencing any action that may be considered wrong in her eyes."

Yang continued to glower at her. "Maybe her speech fails sometimes because her time with them was traumatizing. I've been through some bad times and from what I hear, you have too. Don't get on her case for something she has trouble talking about."

"Well," Cole interjected, drawing the searing look his way, "I don't think she has trouble talking about what she has told us. If Blake is still the same girl as she was when she left, then she won't talk about something if it's really bothering her. She agreed to talk about this, so I think on some level she's okay with telling us about it." Unfortunately, he was the only one at the table who was reading Blake correctly. The reason why this was unfortunate was because he had this knowledge and had shifted the conversation with it.

"This implies that there are events beneath and between what we have been told that are more troubling than what she has said to us already." Lilian remained calm, never raising or lowering her voice. "I believe you are confusing the trauma that both you and I have received with Blake's betrayal. I assume that you are equating your past to mine because you fell victim to a circumstance beyond your control at a formative age." Yang's expression contorted to one of confusion, removing the red tint from her irises. "Blake volunteered for the organization and showed dedication to its beliefs when she was still a child. She was able to retain that naïveté when she joined the organization. She spent her latter formative years alongside murderers, terrorists, and general misrepresentations of the Faunus people and likely began to believe that they were the accepted standard. Yang, our pain spawns from fixed points in time and grows with each day that it is not resolved. Blake's pain comes from every moment before a certain point in time—likely in the form of an epiphany—because that is when she learned that everything she knew was a lie."

Cole returned to looking into his coffee. "That's nine or ten years of uncertainty—of not knowing what's real and what's not. Nobody should have to go through that." He looked up to meet Yang's unsure gaze, his eyes hosting a ferocity that Blake had never seen before. It should be noted that his unrest was not caused by or focused on the blonde. "I'm not a hateful person—I think that everyone has a good bone in their body—but what they did to my daughter is not only inexcusable, it's evil. I don't care about their politics or how beneficial they used to be. They brought Blake in after she wanted to be one of them for months and they had the audacity to try to corrupt her into the person they wanted her to be. That's disgusting. She is Blake Belladonna, my daughter, and they changed her for their own sick purposes." A small cracking noise was heard and halted all emotion in the four at the table. He looked to his mug and when he pulled his hands away, he found that the handle had come off and had split in two. He sighed. "It's just…Blake, I wish I was there to help. I wish I could have convinced you not to go and I wish I could have been there for you." By his speech, he sounded as though he was on the verge of tears, but by his expression this did not seem to be the case. "I'm sorry."

"It's all right." Blake's reason for saying this was not only to console her father for matters that never warranted an apology in the first place, but to quiet the argument that had nearly occurred between her mother and Yang. Tensions were high right now and nobody deserved any hostility. They all looked to her with their respective forms of caring expressions, Cole with his sad and hopeful frown, Lilian with her appraising and agreeing gaze, and Yang with a soft, confident smile. It was this latter expression that inspired continuance on the young Faunus' part. "The experience was traumatizing, yes, and I am aware of the mistakes I made in leaving, but it's over now and I no longer associate myself with them. I know what I did wrong and how I can make amends for it. There is nothing to worry about."

Her father seemed to have been appeased by this statement, most likely due to him being the most readily trusting of the group. Her mother and Yang, however, seemed unconvinced. Her mother's reasoning was most likely caused by something said in the conversation—something telling and something she could latch onto for figurative or subsurface meaning. Yang's, look was of incredulity. Her expression silently asked if Blake was joking, likely recalling the events of the storm that had shaken the reserved Faunus. Yang was perceptive and doubtlessly knew that neither that incident nor the episode in the bookstore was caused by a simple fear of thunder. Out of the three here, Yang knew Blake best. The blonde was given a slight smile that informed her that everything was all right. Seeing this allowed her to smile back in kind.

Lilian retained her neutral look. "And what of the mistakes you made while you sided with the organization? Are they amendable? Can you take responsibility for them or must you continue to run?" Yang's incredulous look returned and was focused on the mother. Lilian raised a hand to halt the expression and any apparent worries. "I ask not for my own safety, but for yours. I would like to know if your actions will have lasting effects and if you have plans to deal with them."

"Are you asking if I have committed any crimes?" Her mother grimly nodded, forcing Blake to sigh. She had to take a moment to compose her answer, knowing that whatever she could say would undoubtedly change her parents' impression of her. Unfortunately, she could think of no means of concealing the truth for this particular response. "Yes," she said simply. Despite her succinct answer, her mother nodded, imploring her to continue and elaborate. Again, Blake sighed. "During my time with the White Fang, I have been involved with breaking and entering, corporate espionage, smuggling, racketeering, and terrorism. There are others, but they are not nearly as severe and I doubt you would want to hear about them."

Blake could not have predicted how badly her parents' reaction would hurt, but when her mother lost her flat look for a frown and her father returned to his broken cup of coffee, she knew that they were disappointed in her and she felt disgusted in herself because of it. Not even Yang reacted in a reassuring manner; probably because she was likely confused and upset as well. Until someone reacted, Blake would begin to rationalize against her purposes for joining the White Fang in the first place and would start to see the faults in her character—her pride, her moral stubbornness, her self-destructive tendencies . However, somebody spoke up and what she said was not reassuring. "Have you killed anyone?" her mother bluntly asked.

Suddenly, Blake was pulled closer to the warm form beside her. "What are you doing?" Yang asked, offense evident in her tone. "Never ask someone a question like that." Even Blake's father was looking at Lilian in astonishment. Blake, on the other hand, had expected this question somehow and thusly did not give as animated a reaction as the other two.

Ignoring her partner's reaction, Blake replied, "I have not."

Her mother raised an eyebrow. "You did not say no."

"For all intents and purposes," Blake sighed, "I have aided and abetted in multiple homicides—more than I can count or have knowledge of." A rhythmic, metallic noise echoed throughout her mind, sounding powerfully and rapidly as wind whipped past her hair. "I have not killed another person myself," explosions occurred around her, alerting Blake that one objective had been completed but another would most likely attack her in the next second, "but have allowed for others to do so, unwittingly or not." She had to ask herself what was more important: resources or integrity—Dust or the lives of humans she had never met. "I assume that I am wanted in several kingdoms," the Forrest of Forever Fall flashed in her mind as the train continued its roaring noise, "including Vale. Fortunately, I do not believe they know my name or face and those who do would not risk informing public officials." She saw his scowl. "Have I killed anyone? No, but by being with the White Fang, I have paved the way for the deaths of hundreds."

"Blake," her father soothed, moving a hand from his mug to rest atop his daughter's. "You're being too hard on yourself. I imagine you're having a rough time dealing with all of this, but just because you made a mistake doesn't mean you did anything wrong. And you certainly didn't kill anyone—you said it yourself."

Her tired, amber gaze turned to him. "Dad, I wasn't just trained to become a leader. I was tasked with twenty-nine White Fang members during a protest in southern Vale. I was personally responsible for their safety and guidance and I failed catastrophically. Those were twenty-nine people whose names I never knew and whose fates were of injury, arrest, or death. I only knew the fates of two people on that day: myself and the ambassador who was speaking of peace. Because of my failure, he and many others died." Her expression darkened, leaving her voice to simmer at a dejected mutter. "No, I'm not being too hard on myself. Realistically, I'm not giving myself enough credit."

As her father gave a pleading look, Yang leaned against the young Faunus, rubbing her arm and exuding a distracting warmth all the while. Blake tried to maintain a glare on her father, but between his worried expression and Yang's efforts, her look lost its edge. Her partner began repeating, "It's okay. You're safe now." Hearing this chant slowly broke the stern expression Blake had been carrying and eventually caused tears to well at the corners of her eyes. She tried to fight against the emotion, thinking that she had already cried enough over the loss of lives, but seeing her parents and Yang in pain alongside her caused the tears to begin to fall despite her best efforts. She did not weep nor sob, instead simply allowing the tears to fall without care. She had entered the organization with peaceful intent and left with the lives of at least thirty people on her shoulders. Five more—Ruby, Weiss, Yang, and her parents—would be added to this list. No matter how far she had come, no matter how much training she had been through to change, she was still the same scared little girl looking for a way to make the world a better place. She was a crying coward and it was evident to all the shadowy figures around her.

"Blake, I," her mother hesitated and stammered, "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…to evoke such memories."

Through her tears, Blake stared blankly at the woman in front of her. "Don't speak to me about intent." Blake spoke in a low, pained growl. "_Never_ speak to me about intent."

Her father withdrew his hand and her mother folded hers in her lap, evidently chastising herself for bringing back this pain. "Blake," Yang whispered. For a split second, the thought of screaming at the source of the voice and telling it to leave her alone came to mind, but she stopped herself because it was Yang. Now she wanted to scream at herself for being such a convoluted mess. Fortunately, Yang whispered her name again and the sound became the only thing the young Faunus could focus on. "Blake, it's going to be okay. It'll be all right if you let it. Everything's going to be okay." There was no logic behind these words, only hopeful optimism, and yet it stopped the flow of tears and allowed Blake to control her ragged breaths. She closed her eyes and felt her partner turn to her parents and say, "Okay, enough questions about her. I know you wanted to talk to me too, so let's talk." Yang put no effort into concealing her motive in changing the conversation. "What do you want to know?"

An awkward silence settled over the four despite the blonde's attempt at moving the conversation along. Blake didn't care how her parents were dealing with her reaction, too content to wallow in self-loathing misery instead. They had said that they wanted to see her again when in reality her parents only wanted to see the girl they had once known come back to them. Blake had robbed them of that girl—she had stolen ten years from their lives. She wanted to apologize but could not because the two across the table kept pushing her away, telling her that she was still the same person she used to be. They were right; she had changed and deprived them of their only child—an action only committable by the worst of criminals.

Without a response from her parents, Blake's distress was only allowed to fester. Yang, however, acted and pulled her partner's head closer to her chest as she whispered, "It's all right, kitten. Everyone here loves you for who you are. We don't care about what you did in the White Fang because you're here now and you're safe with us." Kitten. That was all she was: an ignorant child still enamored with whatever concepts were immediately in front of her at any point in time. Her thoughts were interrupted once more by Yang saying, "It's okay, Blake. You're not the White Fang." Blake hesitated for a moment, trying to return to her self-loathing state, but could not find a means to do so and instead allowed herself a quiet whimper as she leaned into Yang's collar.

Yang did not bother paying attention to the two across the table, instead focusing on keeping her girlfriend safe and warm. Though Blake could not see it, her parents looked to each other, silently conversing and debating over the show of emotion that was occurring before them. They were hesitant but they seemed to understand what was occurring between the physical tells and conversational meaning. Their deliberation ended with Cole's nod, leading to them returning their gaze to the young couple. They would wait for Blake's shivering to slow and for her breath to ease before Cole asked, "Yang?" As she was preoccupied with the girl in her arms, she could only respond with a questioning hum. "Um, if it would be all right, would you still be willing to move the conversation towards you?

The response they were given was not with her usual, sunny cheer, but instead with a distracted indifference. "Huh? Oh, yeah, sure." Blake nuzzled closer to her, trying to take solace in her presence. Yang's speech was absent and monotonous at first, but livened eventually. "Do you want me to start at the beginning, too? Honestly, I'm not used to talking about myself like this, so I'm sorry ahead of time if my explanations aren't good enough."

Surprisingly, Lilian was the one who gave the reassurance. "It's all right. You do not have to explain anything you are uncomfortable with. Your agreement alone tells a lot about you, so please, by all means, take whatever time you need." Blake could only listen to her mother's words, not willing to look at the woman yet. She may have seemed as though she lacked empathy when she normally spoke, but this was not the case. Like Weiss, she was cold, distant, and imperious in nature, but underneath her stoic façade, she had a deep care for those around her and those who would be involved in her life. Regardless of the suspect permanence of Blake and Yang's relationship, the two would be entrusted with each other's lives as combat partners and Lilian undoubtedly knew this. Regardless of if she approved of the relationship, she cared for Yang and this was evident from this uncharacteristic appeasement.

The hand that had been cradling Blake's head lowered to her arm as its owner took a deep breath. "Okay, where to begin?" She took a moment, presumably so that she could compile her story in the correct order or so that she could recall certain defining instances in her life that others would care to listen to. Through her melancholy state, Blake was able to force her attention away from her own past and towards her girlfriend's. When Yang had said that she was uncomfortable with talking about herself, she had not been lying. It had taken Blake more than a semester to learn her partner's semblance and even longer to learn something personal about her. While many believed that Blake was the enigmatic member of Team RWBY, she believed that Yang should hold this title instead—not because of her avoidance of others (which did not exist), but because of her often concealed humbleness. Despite the residual sadness that burdened her, Blake was willing to focus her attention on her partner's story.

Yang began. "Well, my entire family's made up of hunters. Me and Ruby are no different. I was born in Vale, raised in Patch around Signal Academy, and then moved back to Vale with my sister. Actually, our home technically was in Vale when we were growing up, but with dad and my uncle teaching at the school I was attending, they didn't see much reason for us to leave the island. My mom owned the house—well, the land was given to her by the city because of something she did, but she still owned the house. That was where me and Ruby went during our summer and winter breaks and it's where we live now."

Lilian cut in. "If you live there now, where are your parents? It did not sound as though they were present whenever we called."

Yang shook her head. "It's an all right place, I guess. It's not around as many people as dad's apartment in Patch, but that was probably better for Ruby—she's not really the best at first impressions." She was ignoring Lilian's question and distracting Blake from her discomfort—at least, this is what the young Faunus assumed was happening. This was her story to tell and she did not seem willing to let anyone else intervene at the moment. "Anyways, you wanted me to talk about myself. So, I did all right at Signal. I passed the physical and combat courses with no problems, but didn't really like a lot of the class work. I didn't fail any of the classes, but I'm nowhere near as smart as Blake here." The hold she had the referenced girl in tightened for a moment. "But I'm not just some dumb blonde like many people tend to assume. I may not speak as well as you all, but language has never been my strong suit. Combat and forging, though, that's what I know—well, I made built my weapons and bike from scratch, so I think I'm kinda good at forging, but I like combat more."

"Wait," Cole said. "So, you and Blake both said you built your weapons?" The blonde nodded. "How does that work?"

Because Blake's eyes were closed, she could not see the enthusiastic smile that had finally returned to her partner's features. "Well, there's a whole class on that at Signal. We all had to build our own weapons before we were allowed to graduate. It's actually pretty easy once you get the hang of it—the Dust is pretty volatile, though. That's sometimes not fun." She grimaced, apparently having brought up a bad memory of her own. "I'd imagine the White Fang taught Blake how to build hers, too. As big as they are, I'm sure they have a forgemaster in their ranks if they haven't just kidnapped one already from the Atlesian military like everything else they have."

Thankfully, her parents seemed to ignore this last comment. "And then you built a…bicycle?" he asked, obviously confused by his anticlimactic interpretation. "Judging by how much you talk about combat, I have a feeling that it's some sort of battle bike."

"First, it's a motorcycle, not a bicycle. Second, you'd be surprised." When she laughed, Blake's mood lifted by a small, but noticeable degree. "'Battle bike!' I like that. I might just use that sometime." Unfortunately, the parents did not react as positively as the naturally sunny girl did despite the father's joking attitude. This caused her chuckle to sputter and eventually dissipate as she realized their mood. Had Blake the energy to do so, she would have laughed as well if only so her partner would not be alone in this awkward situation.

"And that necklace?" Blake's mother stared somberly at the chain around Yang's neck. "Did you create that yourself?"

Yang's laugh had faded away completely by this point, leaving her response to come in the form of a rather calm shake of the head. "No, Blake gave this to me." With her free hand, she lifted the pendant so she could see the amber gem for herself. "It's…" It was evident to the young Faunus that her partner was attempting to describe what the jewel was or what it meant to her but was failing to find a way that would satisfy her parents' curiosity. Yang sighed and looked back to the parents. "Honestly? This is the nicest gift I've ever received." At this revelation, Blake's eyes opened again to look at the necklace in surprise. "I don't mean that I get a lot of gifts, but whenever Ruby or my uncle gives me something for my birthday, it's usually something that serves a purpose—like, upgrades for Ember Celica or something like a pair of boots I looked at once before."

Cole raised an eyebrow. "Who's that?"

"Who?" Yang mimicked the action before her eyes widened. "Oh! Ember Celica? That's what I named my gauntlets." He continued to hold his confused expression. "It's customary to name your weapon after you make it yourself. It's a luck thing or something superstitious like that. I think I was told that if a weapon doesn't have a name, it's just a tool, but if it does, it's sort of like an 'extension of yourself.' I'm not sure what I think about all that, but I can't argue with the results! You should see Blake with hers." The young Faunus closed her eyes again, knowing that she lacked the will to stop the unwanted things Yang was about to tell her parents. "If you have any doubts about her being a fighter, you should see her in action. Poetry in motion. She calls her weapon 'Gambol Shroud' and I don't even know exactly what it is. It has a gun and a sword—actually, two swords—and she can throw it! Well, that's all I know about it, but man, is it amazing when she uses it."

Blake's embarrassment, at a small percentage, could be said to have been caused by her partner's overzealous praise but was most notably caused by her mother's quiet, almost inaudible chuckle at the name she had given to her weapon. "But as I was saying," thankfully, Yang was directing the conversation away from Blake and the cause of Lilian's laugh, "this is better than all of those—my weapons, my bike, the boots my sister somehow bought for me with no money to her name." Her light, conversational manner of speech had given way to a reverent tone as she turned her head towards Blake. "I know it probably sounds weird, but this necklace means something to me. Normally, I'm the one who has to help out and fix other people's mistakes—and I'm fine with that as long as I'm helping someone I care about—but every once in a while it's nice to have someone care for me as well. Sometimes I don't get a 'Thanks' when I do someone a favor or even an acknowledgement for that matter. But this necklace…I don't know… It's like a reminder that someone actually cares and that's something I've needed pretty badly over these past few years." Yang turned to look to Blake's mother. "I know you probably hate me and I'm sorry for snapping at you earlier, but whatever happens between you and I, Blake's always going to mean a lot to me."

"I can only hope that is the case," Lilian sighed. She took a sip from her coffee, paused for a moment, and met Yang's lilac eyes with her hazel. "Yang, I must admit that you are a difficult person to read and because of this, I cannot bring myself to trust you with the livelihood of my daughter just yet. I hope you understand my stance on this, but though we have conversed rather genially in the past, I still cannot say that I know who you are. Your speech shifts so rapidly from caring to confident, from open to closed, and from cheer to fury. You allude to responsibility but have the disposition of a girl without a care in the world. You speak of trauma and yet you hold yourself as though nothing has or ever could knock you down. Yang, with all my years of learning personalities and analyzing stories—the tales that define who we are from our earliest years—I have yet to find a proper analogy that fits you. You are a flame from what I can see, but I do not know your fuel—I cannot see your motive or purpose. Because of this, I cannot trust you yet."

Unsurprisingly, Yang's expression was a mix of confusion and barely contained anger. She lacked the experience that Blake had with her mother's explanations and thusly must have been unprepared for such an elaborate and detached criticism. Since Yang had yet to speak, Blake's father interjected. "Yang, it's not that we don't like you—you are a charming young lady and a very good friend to Blake—but we don't really know you yet. I'm fine with your relationship, but it's going to take more than three days for my blessing."

Both Blake and Yang's eyes widened in astonishment. Neither had expected his latter statement and had been caught wholly off guard because of it. "I know it's a bit early to think about," he said," but you need to understand where we're coming from. We already let Blake wander off with a group we didn't know everything about and we didn't see her for ten years after that. I have a good feeling about you, but after last time, we can't allow ourselves to work off of instinct alone."

"I, uh…" Blake expected her partner to rebuff the statement about her father's blessing. They were too young to even begin thinking about something that permanent and Yang herself had expressed her fear of this sort of situation before. However, what her partner said—rather, what her partner did not say—was surprising and completely removed all remaining negative sentiments from Blake's mind, forming a blush on her cheeks instead. "Is there anything I can do to gain your trust?"

Lilian allowed herself a small smile. "Time and proven merit. Unfortunately for us all, complete trust cannot be acquired in a single day. If I may be frank with you, I would like to trust you, Yang. You seem to be a very kind person and meeting someone like yourself is a rare occurrence these days. However, necessities are prioritized above desires."

Yang sighed dejectedly. "Okay."

"Though," Lilian began again, causing the blonde to perk up, "it would certainly help if you expanded upon what you failed to mention in your history."

Blake's brows furrowed as Yang asked, "What do you mean?"

"Your story was compelling and laudable, but glaringly dismissive. You failed to mention a few very key points to anyone's person." The blonde's confused expression shifted quickly to defensive. "I can understand if there is information you are uncomfortable with speaking about, but allow me this one piece of information: when Beacon Academy called, telling me that my daughter was staying at the Rose residence for her summer and when your sister answered the phone with the same last name, why do you insist on being called Yang Xiao Long?"

Now it was Blake's turn to glare at her mother. It was her understanding that Yang's surname was an attempt to pay homage to her biological mother's name and because of this—rather, because of the reference to the unknown figure in her partner's life—she was certain this subject would cause pain. However, Yang could defend herself. "What does it matter to you?"

"As I said, trust is gained through proven merit. If you are unable to embellish upon the integrity of your name, then I have no reason to trust you."

"You also said that you'd understand if there was something I didn't want to talk about."

This was followed by perhaps the longest pause in conversation Blake had ever seen her mother take. Seconds ticked away as the woman watched the blonde, contemplating for or against one action or another. "You are not wrong," she eventually she sighed, breaking her steely expression. "Perhaps this trust is not mutual yet. Perhaps trust begets trust." Another pause separated her thoughts from what she would say next. Meanwhile, Cole turned to her, a controlled expression of alarm and concern taking over his features, but was not heeded by the woman sitting beside him. Lilian sighed one more time before beginning. "My name…my name was Lilianne Ducoeur." Cole's expression was now unreadable. "As you can likely tell, the name is not of Vale origin. The Ducoeur family was—and I stress the past tense of this verb—a rather well-off Mistralian family. In a way, my father was like your teammate, the Schnee heiress. However, he was the only son his parents had, leaving him to be the sole inheritor of his surname and its pedigree. My mother was a Faunus of unfortunate circumstance. I will not bore you the details of how their relationship came to be, but when I was born, my father's parents disowned him and their allies and enemies alike came for me, the abomination of impossible design.

"Yang, I know what it's like to fear your own name. We're all characters in our own storybooks with such dark backstories that our existence must certainly be validated at some point in our future. Or is that what we tell ourselves to make us feel as though what we are hiding should stay hidden for the sakes of those around us? You cannot run from your problems forever. Eventually, you must either fight or change. There is no third option in this matter." Her fist was clenched but was being held by one of Cole's hands. She was now glaring at Yang, a terrifying expression to the young Faunus who had seen this look only once before. "Yang, I trust you not with my daughter—not yet—but with information that could destroy me despite how far I've come and how well I've hidden myself. Now I ask that you show the appropriate courtesy and answer my question."

The hold Blake had been held in was released, allowing her to sit up in her own chair and Yang to rest her face in her hands. "Appropriate courtesy? Fear my own name?" Yang's muffled questions frightened Blake because of the anger that scorched each syllable. Yang dropped her hands, revealing her fiery, red glare. "I don't think you understand," she growled. It is to note that while the previous instances of "growling" have indicated anger being only just contained, Yang's current action was indicative of animalistic fury that was not only uncontained, but pointed at a single target. "I laugh at my name. Xiao Long? That's nobody's name and that's why I picked it. You think I should go back to calling myself 'Yang Rose'? You think I would give my pathetic excuse for a father the satisfaction of keeping his name?"

Blake had never seen her partner as upset as she was now. Waves of heat radiated off of her every few seconds, alerting those indiscernible figures around them that something was amiss. However, they would never realize that it was the blonde's fury that caused their discomfort and augmented the light of the room. Blake was scared if she was to be honest with herself. An angry Yang was an uncontrollable Yang and it must be repeated that she had never seen her partner this upset before. Blake was scared for herself, but also for her girlfriend. She called Yang's name but this did not seem to have any effect on her glare. She tried to place a hand atop one of Yang's which now gripped the edge of the table. Unfortunately, the young Faunus did not think her actions through well enough and found that her girlfriend's skin was burning to the touch and was able to bite her fingers when she made contact. Blake ignored the pain, but unfortunately, even when she managed to place a hand over one of the retracted gauntlets, Yang did not relent.

"I get that you're mad and afraid," Yang spat, "but you have no idea how nice your family life sounds to me. At least you got to keep your parents and they were able to raise you. Mine? One ran off, another died, and my father won't even acknowledge me or Ruby anymore." Lilian's countering glare faltered for a second when Yang mentioned the number of parents. "Oh, did I forget to mention that I had three parents? Yeah, all of them failed me. The woman I called mom was the only one of them I actually respected and then she died, leaving me to act as a single parent for her daughter. Do you have any idea how hard it is trying to be a mother figure when you're eight?"

A loud crack sounded in the room as the wood underneath Yang's hands splintered. While her parents' expressions were of differing degrees of fear, Blake could only feel pain when she saw tears begin to stream down Yang's cheeks. "I was supposed to be the big sister, not the surrogate mother, and I've never been good at either one." Her growl had lost its edge and became more of a whimpering cry of desperation. "You wanna know why I'm so positive all the time? It's because I have to be. If I break down, so does my sister and there goes what's left of the Roses!"

In an instant, the overpowering heat in the room was gone and in its place was a shallow silence. Yang spoke in a low, perilous voice with the beginnings of a sob trying to trump whatever she could say. "I understand that you were in pain, but that doesn't mean that everyone else's pain can't compare. I…" She closed her eyes and took a ragged breath. "I'm sorry."

This was all the incentive Blake needed to pull her girlfriend into a hug of her own. She knew that her embrace would never be able to compare to the warm holds that her partner gave, but she would try. As she did this, Blake glared at her parents. Even though they were family, what they did to upset Yang was utterly deplorable. Her father had a wide-eyed expression, showing clearly his fear while her mother stared absently at the blonde, mouthing words that were neither expressed nor comprehensible. Blake wanted to say something to communicate her disappointment in the two before her, but all she could do was shake her head. She had thought Yang to be invincible, but they proved her wrong and for that they were seen as the enemies. Family or not, Yang trusted Blake with her life and the Faunus would fight for her partner as the blonde would fight for her. She simply shook her head.

Her father looked at his coffee for a moment before deciding that it was not his priority. Dolefully he looked to the couple across from himself, watching the emotion and necessity in their respective holds. He had nothing to contribute to the conversation, having trusted Yang since the moment he saw her standing proudly beside his daughter. But at the same time, the fervor in which Lilian interrogated the young girls was instinctually defended out of his love for the woman. It was not his place to speak now, having no tragic upbringing nor unfortunate expectation set upon him by his peers. The young woman glaring daggers at him was the same girl he had watched storm out their front door to join the White Fang so many years ago and because of this, he felt pain. They were one in the same—still scared of what the world truly was but never afraid to confront it head on. He understood why she was glaring at him, though. He had helped orchestrate this scenario with the knowledge that such a reaction was likely to occur. However, he could not say that he was quite ready for any of what had transpired and was now at a loss for what to do. The only thing left for him in this moment was to silently hope that his daughter did not hate him for his mistakes and that someday she would forgive him for something.

Even as Blake glared at her mother, the older woman did not react any further, being obviously at odds with what to do. The only way the young Faunus believed the situation could be rectified was to hold her partner as close as she could and rub her arm as had been done for her so many times before. No longer did any fear of foreign appraisal exist in Blake's mind; she did not care if anyone was watching her hold the blonde and certainly had no interest in any objections they had about her actions. Her attention was focused mostly on her partner's unfortunately shattered façade, but she allocated a small amount of energy to send a questioning glower at her own mother. Eventually, Lilian took a breath. "Yang," she began, calmly but not at all aggressively, "I'm sorry. I have no authority over who you are or how you live your life and I should not have attempted to overextend my reach. And you are correct about my error in believing my pain was the worst of all of ours. Perhaps I have lacked perspective. For what it's worth, I apologize. Had I known the subject would cause this reaction beforehand, I would have never pressed you about it."

After speaking of trust being earned through patience and proven actions, how could she give such a sudden apology when its recipient was still seemingly shocked not only by what had been said to her but by what she had said herself? Was this a flaw in her mother's character—the incapacity to empathize with anything less than the subsurface details in a situation? Every time Blake had spoken to this woman, she had been given esoteric logic that was analytical, agreeable, but seldom personable. A chilling thought came to her mind, comparing her own personality to her mother's. At her younger age, before she left, she had seen her mother as a role model and had focused her education and learning so that she could rival her knowledge. Now, however, Blake wondered whether her efforts were in vain or if they were pointless now that her mother was found to be the compassionless individual she had originally suspected when she was a child. Perhaps this was still simple, childish distrust that plagued many a teenager when it came to their respective parents, but her mother had managed to subvert Yang's kind, loving demeanor and bring about a temperament indicative of anger and heretofore pain. Regardless of what her intentions were, the result was vile.

However, whether or not Blake was interested in the apology was unimportant as she was not the subject of her mother's attempts at reconciliation. The head that was cradled against her chest moved away and turned to look at the woman across from her. Yang was in pain—a mix of fear, despair, and regret forming her features as she spoke. "No, I should be the one apologizing. That was rude of me, lashing out at you like that. Not the best impression to make." She sighed and rubbed the tears from her eyes. As she did so, Blake began to slowly trail her fingers through her partner's hair, feeling its warmth and quietly ridding it of the infrequent knots found within, hoping that by doing so she could calm her. "It's just like what I said. There's a reason I don't like talking about myself because something like this always happens. It's not your fault I'm like this; it's my fault." She closed her eyes again, leaning against Blake before shuddering. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Belladonna. I don't want there to be any bad blood between us because I can't keep my temper in check."

"Yang," surprisingly, it was not Lilian who spoke, but her husband, "it's all right. It's only natural to make mistakes and let yourself get carried away. I'm not saying that getting mad is the right thing to do, but sometimes we just can't help it." Lilian looked as though she had something to say, but he shook his head. "You remind me of when I was your age: headstrong and quick to react. I may not be as outgoing as you are, so I can't say that we're completely the same, but I know you didn't mean to say those things." He turned and smiled at his wife. "Sometimes we try to hide our feelings and tell ourselves that whatever happened was normal and shouldn't be talked about. But all it takes is one moment when emotions get the better of you for all of those memories and thoughts to come tumbling out and fall onto those around you."

Lilian sighed and took a sip of her coffee, trying and failing to recompose herself as well. "I believe Cole's right," she breathed. "All of us—you, Blake, myself, and Cole at times—are prone to bouts of…emotionality." She let out a quiet laugh. "As strange as that may sound coming from me." Blake's glare softened and eventually dissipated as she realized that the antagonistic nature her mother seemed to have was, in reality, her own form of defense. Her façade of neutrality and indifference had broken, showing her conflicted frown, proving to Blake that she was not happy about what had been said and that she had not intended on causing the pain she had. "I'm no monster, but from what I have been told before and from what I see now, it certainly feels as though I am.

"Yang, I do not harbor any resentment towards you. You are a sweet girl and a friend to my daughter. I can understand if you do not trust me and would not hold anything against you for it, but I want you to know that whatever happens, I have great respect for you as a person—not respect from a Faunus to a human, but from one person to another." Yang shifted in Blake's hold before unlatching herself from her partner. Blake received a sad and hopeful smile from the blonde before their attention was turned back towards the speaking woman. "I do not doubt that I will come to trust you, but this trust will not come immediately. And on that matter, I will need time to finalize my judgments on your relationship with my daughter. I hope you understand."

The small smile Yang held broadened for a moment, warming Blake's heart as she said, "That's all I can ask for." At this, the mother smiled as well. Nobody at the table was particularly jubilant or merry, all being in various states of distress and calm, but they were hopeful for what could occur.

Cole's smile widened for a second before he began looking around the room. He began waving at somebody and that somebody was the waiter he had dismissed long ago. With this, the group's orders would be taken now that they could utilize this establishment for its intended purpose. Blake would continue to squeeze her partner's hand as it was gripped back in kind. She calmly watched the overcast atmosphere of the world outside this otherwise tenebrous locale. With Yang by her side, she listened to the rain as it fell on the world around them. There would be no further conversation beside light talk of how the food tasted or how the service was, but nobody at the table felt as though anything else needed to be said for the time being. It was not an appropriate hour for reconnected happiness nor was it late enough to be somber and remorseful. It was a grey day amongst these shifting, uninterested shadows of patrons in the fire-lit room, but those four at the table had come to an agreement and were now contented.

* * *

The rest of the day had gone in relative peace. After the breakfast—rather, lunch by the time they received their food—they had all returned to the Belladonna household to allow those in distress time to compose themselves in solitude. However, only Lilian chose to be alone, saying that she needed time to deliberate upon the matter at hand. Blake and Yang had chosen to share each other's company in the house's living room, not saying or doing much of anything but recovering through the closeness their hold created. No matter how the breakfast had turned out, there were a number of things that had been said that would haunt the girls for the days to come. They were in a strange state of simultaneous sadness and understanding. It is to say that this state they were in was strange not for Blake who had been used to moods such as this, but for Yang whose negative sentimentalities almost always disappeared scant moments after they surfaced.

Cole had seen their immobility and chose to help the couple. Perhaps it was intended to be a peace offering between one parent and Yang, but he asked if he could take them to get ice cream. "For old time's sake," he had said. Blake's rationale at the time spawned from the idea that sitting in their brooding stupor was counterproductive to recovery as well as the thought that since it was her last day in Sierra for the foreseeable future, her father deserved this one last chance at reconnecting with his daughter. Yang only seemed to agree with the idea because Blake wanted to go; however, her disposition eventually changed when they arrived at the shop. It was when Yang was able to smile again that Blake knew her father's actions had a positive purpose to them. He had told the young couple that he supported their relationship but that he would only allow it to "progress" when Lilian came to accept the relationship as well.

Needless to say, this caused the girls to blush and their speech to become impossible while he laughed. In that shop that Blake had visited years ago, she learned that this trip was never meant to be completely beneficial—ten years away from a person can shatter many of the bonds shared with them—but she found that it had not been completely disheartening either. Though their methods were different, her mother and father cared for her as though she was still their daughter. It was also evident that they cared for Yang as well, judging by this visit to the ice cream shop being more so to brighten Yang's mood than to make Blake nostalgic.

Blake would be lying if she said that she did not care for her parents as well. Though they had brought about her ire this morning, she did not despise them. They were family and she felt obligated to continue to hold some positive sentiments towards them. Her father still treated her as though she was a child, but she believed that was because he had missed out on a majority of her life and had no other way to interact with her. Her mother, on the other hand, treated her as an equal which was a frightening thought to the young Faunus. This meant to Blake that she had reached a respectable level of maturity in her parents' eyes but it also allowed her to believe that because her mother saw her as an equal, her childhood could be said to be in the past now. Blake had spent her entire life trying to be older than she actually was, leading to her involvement with the White Fang, her willingness to abide by the new ideals of the organization, and her belief that the world could only become a better place if she took matters into her own hands. It was a thought that no child should ever have to think.

Now she was preparing to leave them once again, this time on more agreeable terms. It was later in the night, just past dinner but before she planned on going to sleep. Rain continued to patter against the window in her room as she stood alone in the darkness. She kept her light off so that she could watch the spots and rivulets of water make innocuous patterns on the glass against the black sky while she packed. Her belongings were strewn across the bed so that she could ensure that everything she had arrived with was accounted for while her suitcase lay open on the ground beside her. She had found that everything was there, but she had not yet gotten over the events of the morning and was unable to trust herself. Blake tried to will herself to pack, but could not. Her books, clothes, weapon, and the black box that now belonged to her partner rested on her bed, ready to be stored away.

Yang would likely return to this room once she finished packing. It was obvious that the blonde was still slightly unnerved and Blake expected her partner to want to sleep beside her again. The young Faunus had no qualms with this idea besides the concepts of her parents finding them again and the time she presumably had remaining while Yang finished preparing. It was this latter idea that allowed Blake to move and begin packing her clothes.

She didn't know why she was having such trouble finding motivation and drive. Perhaps it was because of the dour atmosphere or the lingering pain brought about by memories she had been compelled to describe earlier, but she could not say for sure. She purposefully left out her sleepwear so that she could change after packing, still clinging onto the idea that Yang would arrive any minute. After her clothes went her books, those novels she had yet to impact in the slightest since she left Beacon as well as the journal that Yang had yet to find. She had read from time to time during the break, but found that the energy she spent paying attention to a book could be better invested in Yang or her teammates. Normally, reading had been an outlet for stress, but because this break had been relaxing for the most part, her drive to engross herself in literature was significantly decreased. She was reaching for her weapon when suddenly there was a rapping at the doorframe behind her. Believing that it was Yang, she asked, "Do you have everything you need packed?"

"Blake?" The voice did not come from the person she had anticipated. "May I come in?" The young Faunus turned to find her mother standing in the hallway, hands folded in front of her as she awaited her permission to enter. Blake did not dare look at what was lying on her bed, fearing that her mother would follow her gaze and see the disassembled weapon. However, Blake had not spoken to her mother since the morning and she seemed as though there was something she needed to talk about.

Blake hesitated due to the visible weapon but eventually permitted her entry. "Sure."

Lilian stepped across the invisible boundary into her daughter's room. She did not walk far, merely standing on the other side of the door before she said, "I apologize about what I put you through earlier. I should not have asked you the questions I did and I should have allowed you to tell your own story."

"It's fine," Blake sighed. "You didn't know—I don't think anyone would have." After the time she had to recuperate today, Blake had been able to recompose herself and had realized the error in immediately dismissing her mother's opinion. Like Weiss before, they all had their opinions on what the organization was, but none knew the effects that it had on the young Faunus.

Her mother shook her head and moved further into the room. "No, it is not fine. Blake, the change that you went through is tragic and I lack the perspective required to even begin empathizing with it. Perhaps it was good to speak of what happened immediately after you left, but I should not have asked about anything more." She sighed and walked forward. "Some memories are far too painful to ever see the light of day." Lilian moved beside the bed and surprisingly did not react to the weapon she had doubtlessly seen. She hesitated a moment before taking a seat on the edge of the mattress. "Come," she waved to Blake, "sit."

It seemed as though civility had been restored to the conversations Blake could have with her mother. She would admit that she was unsure of Lilian's motives, but she meant no harm and seemed only to offer potential peace between them. Blake nodded and moved to sit beside her mother, close enough that she could seem comfortable around her parent but distant enough to where she understood that there was still a divide between them. She didn't say anything and neither did her mother, the two choosing to simply stare at the carpeted floor as they each wondered what they could possibly say to the other. In this silence, Blake's mood grew paradoxically tenser and calmer—she knew that something important was going to be said at some point, but at the same time, she was glad that her mother was no longer treating her as though she was a stranger. Suddenly, her mother cleared her throat. "So," she began, surprisingly awkwardly for who she normally portrayed herself as, "Gambol Shroud?"

Those two words were able to instantly break the tension of the conversation and allowed Blake to smirk. "Honestly, I thought that nobody would get it."

Lilian emulated her daughter's expression. "Well, you always did enjoy your literary references."

Blake allowed herself a short laugh. "Would it surprise you if I said I own a copy of it now?"

"Yes, actually." Lilian raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you a tad old for books about horses?"

"I've been that way for a few years." Blake shrugged. "Still, it helped when I was with the White Fang. It let me know where I came from and that I wasn't the same as all of them—it helped me remember that I was still a kid, not that anybody had a problem with telling me that themselves."

This led to another long pause in the conversation that was broken when Lilian turned her head to look at the many parts of Gambol Shroud. "So, this is your weapon?" After the calmness of their conversation thus far, Blake could not be surprised by her mother's lack of reprimanding for bringing a weapon into her house.

Blake turned as well, looking over the various parts and components that, when connected, comprised her sword. "More or less."

"And you created this yourself, correct?" Blake nodded. "And Yang's weapon, she said it was called Ember Celica?" Again, she nodded. "I can't say I understand the reference, but it is a nice name. What is it like, Ember Celica?"

"You've seen them before."

"Her bracelets? Has she been wearing them this entire time?" She seemed legitimately shocked, but not necessarily appalled.

"Gauntlets," Blake corrected. "Actually, they're more shotguns than anything, but if you would like to know more, I'd ask her. Yang loves to talk about the things she makes."

"Ah," her mother sounded, seeming appeased with the information. A few seconds passed between this before she asked, "And her necklace? Did you make that as well?"

Blake shook her head. "No, I bought it for her birthday."

A small smile came to Lilian's lips. "I'm sure it was a sweet gesture, but I believe you are lying to me." Blake turned to her, eyebrows knitted in confusion as to how she could have possibly known this. Her mother laughed quietly. "Blake, I may not have seen you for the past few years, but I am still your mother. You will always have the same tells—blinking right before you lie and your ears reacting when someone catches you." Blake frowned but did not feel remorse for her actions. In actuality, she felt a sort of amusement from having someone know her like this. Yang's knowledge and care for her was heartfelt and comforting, but her mother's was more disciplined and meticulous—strangely reminiscent of their respective personalities. "If you did not buy the necklace, then how did you acquire it?"

The decision of whether or not to tell the truth was the decision of whether or not to reveal a situation that still did not sit well in the young Faunus's mind. However, there was no harm in telling her since there would be no way to go back on the deal now that Yang had been given the jewelry. She sighed. "I helped Weiss Schnee with something that had been bothering her and the necklace was her showing me appreciation—it was a favor in return."

Her mother hummed. "So you truly have learned to accept help from others." This was said with an oddly remorseful tone, as though she was reminiscing about some time or place long forgotten to her.

Silence descended upon the mother and daughter, this pause in particular being longer than those prior even in a combined state. All conversation up to this point had been nothing more than small talk—idle chatter that Blake felt was inevitably leading to some significant point of discussion. There was something about her mother's calm demeanor in this moment, something that told the young Faunus that she was heavily conflicted but wanting to say why. Blake could not tell what it was nor would she ask about it, wanting to respect her mother's privacy. They would continue to sit in this rather awkward silence for a minute, both aware of the others' presence and apparent impatience. Blake was concerned about her partner potentially walking into her room at that moment, believing that if the blonde was to do so, she would either allow Lilian to believe something far less innocent than what had been intended or create a conflict between the two who had nearly shouted at each other in a public area.

Eventually, Lilian sighed. "Blake?" she asked. "About Yang." Blake looked to her mother, knowing that now was the time of her verdict on their relationship and thusly braced for the inevitable impact. "You are aware that my priority lies with ensuring the longevity of our family name, correct?" Blake solemnly nodded. "Then you understand why I had to give up my original name and take your father's. It is a name that I cherish and pride myself on, but because I could not retain the Ducoeur title, I feel as though I must defend the sanctity of our surname. Blake, your partner has no regard for her name and little apparent respect for her heritage. This does not mean that I would not trust her with our name—it is likely that she would readily accept it from what she has said—but it does mean that she would have more of an attachment to Rose than Belladonna. However, I can understand this and hopefully you can as well.

"Yet in my quest for our continuance, I must wonder how our line would be furthered. Neither of you would be able to bear a child and I know you are aware of this. At an individual level, the choice belongs to you alone. From a parental perspective, however, I must admit that I am worried. I understand that this is a subject you do not wish to be hearing at your age, but it must be touched upon.

"Finally, I must wonder if she would do our name honor—an archaic subject, I know, but it must be considered. She claims to be a descendant of hunters and will undoubtedly become one alongside yourself. However, I must question what deeds she may do for the world to increase our name's prestige." Lilian took a deep breath before continuing. "I am unsure if I have realized who she is as a person, but she seems to be a hero—or attempts to be one. It is an admirable personality and will allow for prestige to grow on her part, but at the same time, it is an inherently tragic personality. You and I know that fiction is not reality, but does reveal to us our flaws and sad truths. I fear for both of your sakes the day that Yang realizes her personality's only outcome."

Lilian sighed and looked down to her lap, bringing her daughter's gaze with her. Her thumb brushed gently and carefully across the golden band on her finger. "Blake," she began, "before I make my decision, I need to know one thing: do you love her?" Yes. "I do not mean the term thrown around by children of your age, but the heartfelt adherence to another person's existence. Do you understand the care that she fearlessly shows you and are you willing to give back the same sentiments in full?"

Yes. The decision could not have been more instant or final; Blake knew that she loved her partner and was loved back in kind. Yang was like no other she had met—kind, selfless, warm—and had proven herself more than capable in fighting against the past that so plagued the young Faunus. They were a cohesive unit; they built on each other's strengths and supplemented each other's weaknesses. Blake knew her partner's tells and Yang knew hers. She knew everything about the blonde except the memories that were to stay hidden for both of their protection. Simultaneously, Yang respected Blake despite the atrocities she had committed with the organization and only cared to ask about the memories if they were bothering the young Faunus in any way. Yang was her light in the darkness, her happy ending to a story that would always be bleak and tragic. "Yes," Blake answered, not a tone of doubt nor fear in her voice.

Lilian stopped her motions and smiled—not a small smile or a reserved smirk, but a happy smile. "Yang is a very good person. She has and will protect you in ways your father and I never could. She has proven herself to be more than capable of taking care of you on and off the battlefield, caring for you as your own person rather than who you were or what you could become. Finding someone like that is a rare occurrence in this world, especially for our kind, but what you found in Yang is something special that I found in your father far too late in my life." Tears began to well at the corners of her eyes, but did not fall as she was too focused on her speech to allow extraneous emotion to take precedence. "Blake, you are your own woman now and have made your own choices. I will not stand in your way between you and Yang."

Blake wanted to smile but could not with her mother in the state she appeared to be in. Instead of rejoicing in the acceptance of her relationship, Blake replicated an action learned from Yang and pulled her mother into a hug. Almost immediately, Lilian latched on and reciprocated the embrace. "Blake, no matter what happens or what has gone on, your father and I love you very much. All we ask is that you don't leave us in the shadows like you have over these years." She sniffled, alerting Blake to the otherwise unknown fact that she was now crying. "Just a call every so often would suffice—that is all we ask. We love you, Blake, and we don't want to miss any more of your life."

It took a great deal of effort to stay composed, but Blake felt as though she had to for her mother's sake. If she broke her strong, happy façade now, Lilian would likely begin to sob. Instead of crying, Blake simply smiled and assured, "Don't worry, I will." She closed her eyes and simply held onto her mother for what she believed would be one of the last times she could in her foreseeable future. "I love you too, mom."

Rain continued to plink off of the glass in the dark room, creating a calming, restorative rhythm that was concurrently sobering and reassuring. There would be no thunder nor would there be a storm, simply an overcast rain shower that would stretch far into the night. A northern wind blew down the mountains, through the trees of the forest around the house, and into the town, bringing with it the tides of change and the assurance of a greater future. This town was but a bittersweet memory to the Faunus. This was where she was born, where she was raised, where she learned to fight, where she had learned to forgive, to love, and to accept those whose faults controlled them but could never define them. This was not her home any longer, but Blake could think nothing but kind thoughts about it. This was Sierra.

* * *

I'm going to miss writing Blake's parents. They really did grow on me despite my initial hesitation in introducing them. I believe they were done well enough, got a fair amount accomplished, and allowed for the exposition of a great deal of information that is integral to the plot. Honestly, I find this departure from their characters to be a little saddening, but perhaps that is caused by having to write them and stress over their details for hundreds of hours—none of which I regret. No matter what, though, I feel as though their role in the story has been completed for the most part (Of course, there will be actions stemming from the events of this chapter and Blake did promise to call them every so often.). But like any trip, there is always a certain number of days after which tensions become high and people begin to get on each other's nerves. I believe that these three chapters have been the correct length and their sendoff turned out better than I expected.

Yet out of this sadness comes an inherent happiness. Because Blake and Yang are returning to Vale, Ruby and Weiss will reappear in the next chapter. I can assure you that they have not been stagnant while their teammates were away and the extent of their activities will be described both in the next chapter and in an eventual short story (more anon). I know a few of you may be excited for their return and, admittedly, I am as well. Perhaps writing the other two teammates will be therapeutic and will help me get over Blake's second departure from her parents.

If you thought that the show of emotion on Blake and Yang's parts during this chapter was sad or frustrating (or evocative of any sentiment, really), then I am happy to tell you that the best is yet to come. To avoid spoiling anything, I will not say much on the matter, but from the way the final two acts are plotted, the rest of the story may seem more "action-packed" compared to the first half of this novel. After all, the events of chapters one through nine were leading up to the events in these last three chapters. Now for the falling action.

Finally, I must remark upon the state of the White Rose short stories as well as another work I have created since this chapter and the last. The short stories are coming along well; in fact, I have begun writing the first of the five and I like how it is turning out. However, it will not be released in the near future because I would like to have a few of the stories completed before I submit them to Fanfiction. That way, there will be either two or three substantial stories worth of content to justify following or favoriting. Unfortunately, the short stories will not be released on as frequent a basis as _Valence_ currently is (as if this rate is timely) because they are secondary in my writing priorities. My first priority is _Valence_. As for the other story referenced, I have written a Bumblebee one-shot titled _NVG_ and it can be found on my Fanfiction profile under the "My Stories" tab. The story itself does not depend on the content of _Valence_, but it can be assumed that it takes place between Yang's invitation to Blake and the end of the school year. If you are feeling a bit down after this chapter, _NVG_ is a short read that might help.

Once again, thank you for reading. Sometime between the posting of chapter eleven and the posting of this chapter, _Valence_ passed 100 favorites and 150 followers. I still cannot get over the fact that you all like my story. When I began writing _Valence_, I thought that I was going to be booed out of the Fanfiction community because of the way I write, but you all proved me wrong in the best way possible. Though I have received my fair share of boos (with due cause, I suppose), the support shown for this story is consistently astonishing. Even though I have only talked to a few of you, those I have had the privilege to speak with have given what I believe is a fair representation of how amazing you all are—not only as readers who support a writer, but as wonderful individuals. I apologize if you have reviewed with the expectation of receiving a private message afterward and have not. If I have not messaged you, it does not mean I do not value your review (in fact, I reread all of them countless times), but that I do not have anything worthwhile to say or I fear that I would interrupt your day. No matter what, you are incredible people in my mind and I humbly thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Stay safe and stay tuned.


	13. Chapter 13: Together

Thank you for reading.

I will keep this author's note brief because there is a sizable one at the end of this chapter that I should warn you about. It is not necessarily huge, but it is a few paragraphs in length. There is a lot to this chapter and, therefore, a lot for me to comment on after the fact.

To keep with the promise of brevity in this author's note, I shall leave you be. I hope that I did justice to chapter thirteen of _Valence_.

* * *

Chapter 13: Together

The halls of Vale's international airport sparkled as unfettered rays of sunlight beamed through its glass ceilings and walls and bounded off the polished, glimmering floor to create what looked to be a gleaming palace of affluent design and promise. Smiling families, couples, and individuals all but skipped through these halls, jubilant about their arrival at the coastal city or excited for their eventual destinations. As it was still early in the summer months, it could be assumed that these people who dressed in shorts and sandals were only now taking their vacations, cheerfully heading from sunny locale to sunny locale. There was a definite buzz of excitement about each of them, evident from their innocuous chitterings and anticipatory smiles. It was doubtless that their strolls through these halls, security, and to their gates were, in all, a boring crawl that only impeded their eventual joy and relaxation on the other side of their flights. Of course, the flights themselves would be monotonous, but this had been expected and did not bother any of these vacationers. They were far too happy and could not attach themselves to any negative sentimentalities. Blake and Yang, however, could not be so positive.

The young couple trudged through these blinding halls, figuratively dragging their own luggage, Yang without much apparent care for anything at the moment and Blake with her off hand. They were not sad—rather, they were, just not definitively. "Drained" is an appropriate descriptor for these dreary two, being indicative of their physically tired states and emotionally fatigued mentalities. Their insufferably long flight had taken a toll on them to some degree, but they had slept on the way back and had still retained this level of unrest, not because of the duration of their voyage, but because of the events that came before it. Though Blake had been able to reconnect with her family, she and her partner felt as though there was much to be desired with their visit and introductions. It is to say that Blake did not feel "homesick" now because this would require Sierra to still be considered her home. Rather, Blake missed her parents and was unhappy with the way she had treated them.

While she had an idea of what was causing her own distress, Blake could not say what had evoked such an uncharacteristic show of somberness on Yang's part. She had been this way since Lilian and Cole had hugged her just before they left the house in the forest. Before, she was tired, but after the reconciling and unexpected hold, she became suddenly quiet. Blake had explained to her the night prior how their relationship was now supported by both parents, bringing about Yang's excitement, but even with this knowledge, she was apparently sad—for what reason, Blake had not the slightest of clues. She had wanted to ask what was wrong, but the moment never seemed opportune and despite Yang being obviously comfortable around her, the young Faunus could not stop thinking that if she were to ask, it would come off as rude. This immobility only exacerbated Blake's negativity.

She did not care about the crowds that were passing by nor did she care if they looked at her critically. Even at this early afternoon hour, Blake could not muster a glare for those whose gaze passed her over. All she could do was sigh and continue to dissect the cause of her current negativity. If she was to be honest with herself, she felt bad about how she had treated her parents—not only before she left for the White Fang, but when she returned. The first day of their visit had been fine, excluding the initial fear that was eventually proven unwarranted. The second, as fun as it had been, distanced Blake from her parents because she was away with Yang for a majority of the day. The final day, however, proved to be the worst. The facts of her finding common ground with her parents and her relationship being supported could not surmount the guilt that had been brought up during the conversation at the restaurant. Somehow, that single conversation had put the past ten years into perspective. It did not change her mind about any matters nor did it make her feel any worse about what she had done, but it showed her who she had been, what she had become, and what damage she had wreaked upon those she cared about. Perhaps it was this thought that caused her current mood.

Though, she reasoned that her negativity was possibly caused by the combination of this latter thought and the idea that she had incurred yet another bad memory that would be added to the veritable library of others. The trip had been one large apology in the end. She began the first day with the apology and ended the final day by receiving an apology—one that was wholly unnecessary and should have been given to her mother instead. She had treated them poorly—as though they were her enemies—and they never once allowed her to apologize. Some part of her saw the visit as her last chance at redemption for this past decade, but her logical mind knew that this was not the case. Unfortunately, this rationality had been suppressed by a mix of fatigue, forlornness, and worry. She had proven to be a coward yet again.

Blake sighed. Perhaps she was overthinking their trip. If Yang had taught her anything, it was that she needed to live in the moment and not cling to the past just so that she could remember the pain that had afflicted her long ago. Of course, it would not be so easy in all events, but she could at the very least try. Blake forced her gaze up, away from the floor and down the hall so that she might create a guise of confidence that Yang needed at the moment. She looked at the crowd ahead that congealed into a singular, daunting mass of humanity blocking the couple from the exit. It was a challenge, but Blake would not be afraid for Yang's sake. Keeping her eyes trained on the light beyond the people, the young Faunus attempted to blindly grasp the hand swinging drearily beside her own. It took a few attempts as the target proved difficult to reach, but once they came in contact, Yang gripped on tightly.

The blonde's expression lifted, but not enough to where she could be said to be happy or even indifferent. This strong grip that she had was desperate and telling of her pain that otherwise would have gone unnoticed. Not only was Yang distraught, she was hurt. Unfortunately, Blake was hurt as well, but in a more physical sense and this pain had forced her own grip to weaken. When Yang had lost control of her emotions yesterday, her aura had flared and left the ends of Blake's fingers burnt after the young Faunus had tried to reach out to her. It was still a painful sensation, but Blake had suffered worse and would not show her discomfort because she knew that doing so would only further affect her partner. Yang's hands were simply warm now and would not cause any more pain. Blake squeezed back, minding her fingertips but conveying to her girlfriend that everything was all right.

Yang did not say anything but kept her grip steady. Together, the young couple walked down the hall and towards the crowd as they hoped to reach home soon enough. Home. Blake was confident where that was now. Though it had only been a year, she felt that wherever her teammates were would be the safest and most supporting place she could find. Of course, their differing personalities led to unpredictable, often stressful situations, but after her time spent with the White Fang, Blake had acclimatized to this sort of stress. Fortunately, her teammates were all kind people in their own ways, allowing for the young Faunus' comfort around them to grow and the acceptance of the sisters' house as her present home.

The crowd did not seem daunting even once, allowing the Faunus' confident stride towards the wall of humanity that separated her from Vale to remain certain. By this point, she was all but dragging her distracted partner towards the mass that would have otherwise dissuaded her movements. Though she could not see a direct path through the crowd, she would not slow her march nor would she release the gloved hand. It is to say that she had her doubts about the crowd, but she would keep a strong façade for Yang's sake. This façade would hold until the moment they exited on the other side and when that moment occurred, Blake let out a heavy sigh that finally caught Yang's attention.

"Are you all right?" the blonde asked, no trace of discontent in her tone save for the concern she had for her partner.

Blake was more than all right now that Yang was showing signs of recovering from whatever thoughts had ailed her. Though, she could not say that the journey through the masses was enjoyable when in actuality it had been harrowing and was purposefully forgotten about as soon as she arrived at the glass doors of the exit. Yang's returned speech had allowed a small, but very much relieved smile to grace the Faunus' features before she turned to her partner. The blonde still held her concerned look and even still she seemed to be troubled by something else. Blake focused her slight, sincere smile on her girlfriend before replying, "Yeah, I'm fine," hoping that by doing so, she could raise the downtrodden girl's spirits. "I just wasn't prepared to go through that many people is all."

Yang simply hummed in acceptance, causing Blake's smile to fade. There was something seriously wrong and now it was Blake's turn to be concerned. The two stood in place, the Faunus holding her partner's hand and her partner staring glumly at the ground or into the nothingness below it. The sight of such an exuberant youth descending into a weary, crestfallen state stung. Yang never seemed to be the type to linger on an uncomfortable subject for long, yet here she was standing still when she could be returning home. Whatever she was thinking about was a mystery to the young Faunus—one that she initially wanted to avoid asking about, but one she now knew must be addressed. Unfortunately, around the couple were cheery flyers who would be ever so happy to eavesdrop upon a conversation and then discuss it in whatever free time they had between standing in security checkpoints and waiting at their gates. Blake did not want to see her partner in this pain and it was this thought that led to her decision of asking Yang what was wrong when next it would prove convenient. Because this public location was not the best venue for such a discussion, she decided that their conversation would hopefully take place once they found a taxi and began their voyage home.

Until then, however, they needed to escape the airport, find said taxi, and place their belongings therein. "Come on," Blake said. It was an attempt to encourage her partner back into positivity. She pulled the gloved hand and Yang simply obliged. The reaction was still disconcerting, but Blake thought that perhaps once they stepped out into the city's warmer climate, her partner would perk up, but even the familiar oceanic breeze could not spark Yang's regular enthusiasm. The blonde did not react whatsoever after stepping out into the cacophonous wilderness outside of the terminal.

Vale, being this kingdom's capital, is a rather populated city and a prominent travel destination for both business and leisure. For this reason, the sidewalk immediately outside the glimmering building was congested and aggressive. Horns honked over the shouting people, conveying messages of both the desire for patronage and the need for people to back away. Some were jumping to see the taxis on the road, others were audibly grumbling about those in front of them, and even still others loitered not only at the back of the crowd, but in its core, creating an irksome passivity that managed to further upset those already impatient members of the mass. The couple had arrived upon this chaos and found themselves trapped amongst the wall of people as more filed out of the terminal behind them.

Blake froze. The crowd inside had been patient and inevitably traversable, but this horde was a ravenous, restless bunch. One wrong move, she thought, and they would turn on her. Those before her were vying to reach what could have only been half a dozen available taxis on the side of the road while those behind her were struggling to move past. She felt her luggage swing with the passing of one person's knee and she felt Yang pushed slightly away from her as someone tried to break their hold. Yet Blake could not react to this attempt at separation as she was still shocked by the sheer amount of unruly people in such a small area. She could hear their feet stomping, their voices rising, and their ire building before she blinked and refocused herself.

Now was not the time to linger on painful memories. Yang was still unresponsive and distressed. Blake doubted that this location was the only area where taxis could be found and knew that they were not confined to this portion of the sidewalk. As such, she gripped her partner's hand tighter, alerting the blonde to their movement. Foregoing any sentiments of fear or sympathy for the others' aggression, Blake began to push through the crowd, away from the exit and down the promenade to where other possible forms of transportation could be found. This process proved difficult and unnerving for the socially aversive Faunus at first, but as they moved further from the center, the easier it became to find gaps between people and groups who were not nearly as impatient. Yet the crowd would never truly dissipate no matter how far the couple could have traveled and would stretch on for the entirety of this sidewalk and all others where exits could be found. Fortunately, the young Faunus' ears (bound for the sake of secrecy) perked at the barely audible call of "Lady Belladonna!"

On instinct, Blake turned to the source of the noise only to find more people blocking her view of the road. However, she knew that the voice had surprisingly come from a Schnee driver and felt that this fortunate occurrence would spare them from waiting amongst the masses for a taxi of their own. Yang continued to show no resistance, even with their change of direction and eventual halting in front of the white limousine. Once the couple arrived at the vehicle, they found the assumed driver standing patiently, arms folded behind his back, as he looked to them with a moderate smile. "Welcome back, Lady Belladonna," he greeted before turning to Yang. "Lady Xiao Long, as it is approximately fifteen minutes past the time you were intended to return, I must convey this message." As he cleared his throat, Yang looked up at him wearily. "Lady Schnee has instructed me to tell you, 'About time.'"

Yang sighed and closed her eyes. Other than the slight increase in temperature that was unnoticeable for the most part, she did not give off any outward indication of anger. Her response to the man's instruction, however, revealed her underlying temper. "You mind if I ask you a personal question?" The driver accepted. "How much are the Schnees paying you?"

He chuckled lightly. "A hefty sum, I can assure you."

"And is it worth it? You know, all that money for following Weiss' orders?"

He simply smiled. "As I said, Lady Xiao Long, it _is_ a hefty sum."

"Yeah, I'll bet," she grumbled before turning to Blake. "All right, I'll take care of the bags, go ahead and take a seat."

Yang detached her hand from the Faunus' and extended it towards Blake's suitcase. She retained her uncharacteristic neutral expression, showing none of her regular enthusiasm or happiness about the action. Her hand never reached her partner's suitcase because Blake shook her head and responded, "No, Yang. I will take care of our luggage." Through the indifferent expression, Yang assumingly desired to object, but fell to Blake's smile. "It's been a long day. You're tired and you need to rest. Let me take care of everything; you've helped more than enough." Yang retained her expression for a moment, but relented after Blake's singular "Please?"

Though the blonde was in obvious disagreement with the suggestion, she submitted and extended her own suitcase towards the Faunus nevertheless. "Fine," she relented as she bowed her head. There was something in this expression that Blake knew all too well—a thought grave and undesirable in any disposition no matter how positive or realistic. Failure. Yang saw this as an act of failure or, worse yet, cowardice. When Yang frowned, Blake frowned. When the young Faunus took the suitcase from her partner's hand, the frowns lingered and the blonde backed away.

The driver moved just out of the couple's view, opening the door and extending his sincere greeting to the girl he had been ordered to previously antagonize. Once again, Yang sighed before moving to enter the car. However, before she could, Blake stepped forward with both bags in hand to kiss her on the cheek. The driver looked away for whatever reason (possibly out of simple discomfort with a public display of affection) as Yang relaxed and Blake said, "Don't worry, I'll be right back."

For the first time since arriving in Vale, Yang smiled, and though it was a faint smile, it was a smile that warmed Blake's heart. "Yeah, all right," the smile could even be heard in her tone, "don't strain yourself."

Blake nearly laughed but instead chose to quip with "I will do my best" before passing her girlfriend and heading towards the limousine's trunk. As she did so, Yang crawled into the vehicle while the driver followed the Faunus. He proceeded to open the trunk, smile at Blake, and move to the driver side door, leaving the girl alone with polite efficiency that had to be admired.

Though Yang had voiced her distaste for the assistants on many an occasion (often using a choice selection of short yet effective vocabulary), Blake held no reservations against the men in suits, instead finding them rather kind if subtly condescending at times. Not once had they been outwardly spiteful nor had they given anything but a smile with their actions. Though, the honorifics they seemed to always attach to their names was strange, but Blake thought it part of their training for when they dealt with members of the Schnee family. They were professional, they were courteous, and they had no intention for conversation outside of what was absolutely necessary and polite—to the introverted mind of Blake, they were delightful company to have from time to time.

With the bags put away, Blake closed the trunk and moved to rejoin her partner. Before she could enter the opened door, however, she felt compelled to look at the nameless masses that continued to struggle for a seat in a taxi. While they did continue to push and wait and mutter and hop, those closest to the limousine looked at the Faunus with nothing but contempt. They were bitter because she, of all people, would have transportation provided for her specifically and would not include any of them despite the space on the benches inside. Those that looked down on her grew in numbers as her mind began to rationalize and imagine, yet never once did her thoughts stray to the belief that these people hated her for what lie beneath her bow. Instead, she knew that they looked at her this way because of what remaining space there was within the limousine. These people had no allegiance to the White Fang nor did they assume who she was. They simply despised her because she had what they lacked and for the first time in the Faunus' life, she did not care about their opinions.

Blake smiled as a means of possibly bringing her partner back to who she usually was, but as she entered the car and closed the door, this grin fell. Across the bench opposite the door lay Yang, motionless and awake. It was a chilling sight—the listless gaze at nothing in particular, the mane of hair spilled haphazardly across the seat and floor beneath, and the uncomfortable, pessimistic pout that she unwittingly displayed. Instantly, Blake wanted to console the blonde and simply hold her near until whatever bothered her vanished entirely. However, this expression was the result of mounting emotions over the past ten hours wherein she had held Yang close nearly the entire time. Now was the time for speech instead of physical affection—understanding rather than suppression. For this reason, Blake respected her partner's position and chose to seat herself on the opposite bench, never once taking her gaze off of the solemn girl even as she put on her safety belt and prepared for the hour-long drive ahead of them.

Yang did not react when the limousine rumbled to life; she did not move her gaze from the unimportant spot on the far wall nor did she seem to care about her own seatbelt. Somehow, the blonde seemed to be in a worse state than when she was in the terminal. Not only did she seem forlorn for some reason, she looked outwardly sad. Perhaps memories plagued her as well, but Blake had reason to believe that this was not the case as her partner had been able to overcome such paralyzing sentiments in the past. However, an argument could be made towards the opposite, Blake supposed.

This reaction had started not after Cole had given Yang a hug, but after Lilian. Perhaps this was a reflective melancholy spurred by the meeting of one more mother figure in her life. Blake did not think Yang saw Lilian as a mother figure of her own, but within the blonde's mind, the elder Faunus was the most stable, motherly person she had known within the past decade. Despite their differences and arguments, the two seemed to have a respect for each another, but perhaps this was as enemies do when face-to-face in impending, unavoidable combat. Perhaps it truly was a memory that pained her partner so, Blake thought. Perhaps it would be best to bring this memory to the forefront and discuss it rather than allow it to fester within the currently dark mind of the exuberant youth. However, this could not be immediately achieved due to the shifting of the dividing window between driver and cabin.

The driver asked, "Are you prepared to depart, Lady Belladonna?"

"Yeah, get going," Yang grumbled. At this, the window closed and the car began to roll forward, bringing the blonde's sudden anger back down to a distraught neutrality.

Yang had always been the expressive type—the one who would show her jubilance when she was happy and the one who could manifest her ire whenever she was angry—but her indifference and sighing resignation were painful for the regularly composed Faunus to witness. The lilac stare returned to the same invisible point while the amber gaze drooped out of pity. It was obvious Yang had something on her mind, but judging by the responses she had given the driver, she did not seem to be in much of a talkative mood. However, she had been able to speak genially after Blake had taken her suitcase, so the young Faunus did believe that there was the possibility that Yang had an exception for her. Yet she did not want to risk her girlfriend's temper, leaving her at an emotional impasse. On one hand, she wanted to know what was bothering Yang and what could be done to help her feel better, but on the other hand, Yang was like Blake in that she was not the type of person who would ask for help or speak freely about what was concerning her.

As the airport terminal slid out of their view and while the ornery bunch continued their attempts to find taxis, Blake knew that now was as good a time as any to ask what was the matter. They had approximately one more hour together before they would return to their teammates and in that time, they could either progress or simmer. Blake made her decision. "Yang?" she asked, receiving a curious, yet not at all angrily raised eyebrow. The young Faunus took but a moment to phrase her next few words correctly before asking, "Are you all right?"

"Yeah," Yang murmured and closed her eyes, "I'm fine."

"I wouldn't classify your current expression as 'fine.' I can tell that something's bothering you and I would like to help."

The blonde rolled so that her face was partially buried in the seat as she mumbled, "It's nothing."

Blake frowned. "Now you're sounding like me." Yang's one visible eye turned to lock with her partner's gaze. It was a wary expression—afraid and hesitant but not once hostile. "Please, Yang, if something is on your mind let me know." Yang did not seem immediately ready to speak, but Blake knew one word that would certainly affect her partner, as underhanded as it may be to use it. "It hurts to see you this way."

There was a momentary pause of what could only be assumed to be revelatory comprehension before Yang sat up with a groan. She did not pay heed to her own seatbelt, choosing instead to simply lean back against the seat as she looked across to her partner, an alarmingly apologetic and self-loathing expression crossing her countenance. "I'm sorry," she said. This was followed by a deep breath. "It's just…" She shook her head. "It's just that…I know you said your mom and dad were fine with me and our relationship, but I keep thinking that," she seemed to pick her words carefully, "they don't really like me or me being with you."

This was not the case whatsoever. Cole had not only stated his favor for the girl, but had shown similarities to Yang in both demeanor and sense of humor. To Blake, her father and her partner were fast friends and had never once found reason or grounds for conflict between each other. Even Lilian who had clashed with the blonde respected her. She had stated that trust had not been completely earned but that seeds had been sewn and merits had been proven to warrant a degree of familiarity and understanding that would, in time, lead to trust. And this was only the response Blake's mother had given to Yang on the day before they left. On the day of their departure, Lilian had hugged the taller girl with the same warmth she had hugged her daughter—it is to be noted that to a Belladonna, physical contact such as this is unquestionably an endearing show of acceptance. In actuality, Yang had managed to earn the respect of all members of the Belladonna family in relatively short times for their individual personalities—Lilian's most of all. This was the reason Blake said, "Yang, they love you—there's no doubt about it." Yang seemed confused. "They may not know you as well as they know me, but they care for you. You must know my father liked you and my mother would never talk to anyone the way she spoke to you if she was not comfortable with you."

Yang shook her head. "Yeah, I get that, but still I think they think I'm not good enough for you." She looked perplexed for a moment, perhaps at her own phrasing, but shook the expression off for an even deeper frown. "What's worse is that I think it's getting to me."

"What is?"

"I…I'm starting to think that I'm not good enough for you." She closed her eyes again, retreating back into the clutches of fear and doubt. "I know what you said—I know what _I_ said! But, still, I think that whole visit made it clear that I'm not the type of person you should be looking for."

"Yang…"

"No, Blake, it's all right." Despite her words, her tone told the opposite. "I mean, if you look at the difference between you and me, it's kinda obvious that I'm not 'the one.' Take your dad for example. He's calm, likes to have fun, and is positive about everything, but best of all, he can control himself. Me? I'm a hothead—if I ever heard you got hurt, I'd never just be able to break a mug's handle, I'd go ballistic! But your dad, he'd worry about you and not the guys who hurt you. I don't know if I can say the same for myself. I mean, sure, I'd be worried like crazy about you, but I don't know if I'd be able to stop myself from going after the guys who hurt you. After all that White Fang stuff, you need some kind of stability and your dad offers that better than I can.

"And your mom! God, she's smart. I know you like books and all, but man, does she have it bad." Though the sentences and exclamations could have been perceived as jokes and light-hearted compliments, they could only indicate the blonde's insecurities that, up until this point, had not been perceived by the Faunus. "You're smart, too—way smarter than I can hope or care to be, that's for sure—and I don't think I'd be of any use to you. Sure, I can fight, but study?" She laughed bitterly. "Not likely. I can't read as well as you two can, speak as well, and I definitely can't think as well as you two can. I think your mom knows that. Maybe she doesn't trust me because I can't even hold a conversation with her. That, or she's just stuck-up and doesn't want to have any fun." After this latter sentence, she hesitated and sighed. "Sorry. She's nice, I guess. Scary, but nice."

She shook her head and looked Blake seriously in the eye. "Blake, I'm sorry if I'm not good enough for you. If at any time you decide that I'm not calm enough or smart enough or anything at all, please don't stay with me. I don't want to see you get hurt and if I'm not up to your standards—"

"Yang," Blake forcefully interrupted. "Stop." The girl in question looked bewildered, as though she had been pulled back from a tangent that would have otherwise been unstoppable and wholly illogical. The young Faunus leaned forward and captured both of Yang's hands in her own, never taking her eyes off of her partner's. "You _are_ calm and you _are_ smart. Do not compare yourself to others because you will always find someone who is extraordinary in a certain area—areas that nobody can hope to surpass because those individuals have spent all their time perfecting their abilities. We have our entire lives ahead of us; leaving the White Fang showed me—" She corrected herself, "No, _you_ showed me that." Blake saw her partner's eyes begin to bow. Whether this was from disagreement or happiness, Blake could not be sure, but she squeezed Yang's hands and brought her lilac gaze upward once more. "I love you, Yang. There isn't anyone else who could take your place."

"I…" Yang's expression bordered on one of the most teary, saddest smiles Blake had ever seen from the blonde and yet it warmed her heart unconditionally. "I love you, too."

The young couple would remain in this state, simply smiling as they held onto each other for minutes imperceptible. From Blake's perspective, the entire hour that it would take to arrive at the house could have passed by or it could only have been a fraction of a second, but the value she placed on that moment and its ability to relieve Yang from her ailing stresses was inconceivable to her as it was all of personal, intimate, and something entirely not allowed within the clutches of the White Fang. There needed not to have been a hug or a kiss because the words said had conveyed emotion well enough. For a second, Blake thought to suggest that Yang put on her seatbelt as well, but now was not the time. They were ignoring the passing buildings, lights, and cars that together made up the freeway around the city that, while grand and self-important in design, could not distract the two from one another. Blake began to move a thumb against the skin that was not covered by the glove and her partner eventually did the same, warming gradually and coming back to her regular personality.

Sometime during the ride, Yang's actions ceased and her gaze shifted to Blake's dominant hand. "Blake?" she asked, not truly seeking for a response before she flipped the Faunus' hand over. Atop the fingertips was flushed skin that lingered still from the show of defensive fury the day prior. Yang blinked before detaching, groaning, and returning to her horizontal position. "I did that, didn't I?" She received no response due to Blake being unsure about what to say. "Blake, I'm sorry. I'm so, so, so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you, I promise."

She had regressed into a similar distressed state and had shocked Blake with the suddenness of this reaction. Already she seemed to be on the verge of tears, self-loathing dripping off of every apologetic syllable. In an instant, Blake unbuckled her seatbelt and moved to the opposite bench, sitting beside her girlfriend's head and rubbing her arm reassuringly with the burned hand. She felt that now was the time for physical closeness and engaged her partner accordingly as she soothed, "It's all right. I've been through worse and this doesn't hurt." Yang tried to shy away, but Blake continued. "Yang, I wasn't thinking correctly when this happened. If anyone is to blame, it's me." She moved the hand up into her partner's hair. "Please, Yang, do not worry about this. I don't want to see you in pain either."

Yang was still for a long, quiet, presumably introspective moment after which she moved up the seat to rest her head atop Blake's lap. As she continued to frown at the opposite window, the young Faunus continued to brush the golden mane, having no qualms with her partner's action. If, through this, Yang would be calmed and brought back to her previous sunny disposition, Blake would gladly maintain her affections. Fortunately, the warmth that was so characteristic of the blonde was beginning to return—not as quickly as it usually did, but it would return in full gradually. "It's all right," Blake assured. "It's all right." Yang exhaled and with this came the return of even more of her warmth. Perhaps it would be best to distract her thoughts from those that troubled her still. "Yang?" The girl hummed. "Is there anything you would like to do when we get home? Anything to get your mind off of this?"

Again, Yang sighed. However, this sigh in comparison to all the others was more so out of relief than out of exasperated anguish. "Yeah," she said. "Really, all I wanna do is see my sister again. I'm worried about her being alone with Weiss. What if—" She cut herself off and breathed. "I don't know. It's been a long couple of days and even after all that sleep, I'm still tired. I think I need to relax for a bit. I guess I'll see Ruby again first and then maybe we could watch a movie tonight or something, just you and me."

Blake smiled. "I'd like that." Yang nodded and then attempted to curl up on the seat, crossing her arms and pulling in her legs as relaxed into her partner's brushing. The blonde's expression still gave off the impression that she was troubled by her thoughts, but it could not be said that she was controlled by them any longer.

The two would remain in this reassuring, absent-mindedly affectionate state for however long it would take to return to that dirt path on the fringes of the city. Blake knew that Yang would recover—that was part of who she was. Neither negativity nor memory could restrain the blonde for long because her selfless positivity was not caused by her own need, but the needs of those around her. To many, this may seem a piteous existence and mentality, but it must be understood that through seeing others' happiness, Yang was able to become happy herself. In turn, Blake was happy to see the joy that existed in every smile and grin and hug that was not simply given, but gifted. The Faunus could only speak from her own painful experience with life, but she treasured that positivity as the anchor that could keep her from straying too far into the darkness. And to Yang, her partner's placidity and logical perspective could ground her in reality during times when light began to fade. They did not exist for each other, but loved each other whole-heartedly and in this moment of calm reassurance, they each knew this for fact.

* * *

The limousine's door opened to reveal the doorstep of the sisters' home, large in scale yet modest in appearance. The scene was quiet save for the low hum of the engine, the faint chirpings of invisible birds, and the distant, ambient rustling of trees. Yang stepped out first and smiled gratefully at the suited man who stood beside the door. She was followed soon after by Blake who smirked at the now familiar sight. This warm abode seemed to welcome the two back. Somehow, it seemed cooler here than it had been when they left despite the season nearing its midpoint. A refreshing wind blew softly past the car, bringing Blake's attention to the white, towering, gentle clouds floating far apart from each other against the pleasant blue. Whatever doubts or worries that existed within the minds of either girl vanished for the moment at this sight of home.

The door was closed behind them and Yang sighed. "Okay," she said, presumably fortifying her still inundated state of mind and countering Blake's prediction of her saying something relieved and sentimental as she had when first returning to this land for the summer. The blonde's head turned to meet her partner's gaze and she smiled briefly. This was no emotional or trepid homecoming by any means; rather, it was long-awaited and fortunate now that the time had finally come. Blake felt what must have been a similar sensation, but she knew that because her time calling this house her home was significantly shorter than the time Yang had referred to it as such, her own reaction could not nearly be as reassuring.

Blake would allow Yang to revel in her return while she, herself, moved to collect their luggage from the trunk. It was refreshing to step away from the sentiments spawning from this arrival for a moment. It is not to say that the young Faunus was uncomfortable with the show of emotion; rather, it had been a long flight with a subsequent long car ride and the opportunity to stretch her legs and move across solid earth would not be squandered. She was a huntress, after all—that is, she was a huntress-in-training—which meant that physical atrophy to even a slight degree did not sit well with her. Regardless of Yang's thoughts on the matter, Blake pulled both suitcases from the limousine, closed the trunk, and returned to her girlfriend's side. "Ready?" she asked.

Yang nodded and the two moved forward. The driver went about his business, returning to the limousine and eventually moving off of the premises as his job had been completed for the time being. As the couple neared the door, their excited hesitance began to disappear and by the time they reached it, this trepidation had been completely replaced by a sense of impatience spawned from fatigue. Yang looked to her jacket and fished around in its pockets for the key to the house. She had fortunately lost her distraught expression in the past hour, but she was not smiling nor was she radiating the same happiness that she often did prior to leaving Sierra. The lack of apathy was fortunate, but her inability to instantly recover to her usual state was disheartening to the young Faunus. Blake thought that perhaps this latter fault would prove far more distressing to someone other than the girl who knew indifference and morose existence all too well. Ruby looked up to Yang even at her current age and it was reasonable to believe that if the young leader saw her sister's uncharacteristic demeanor, some altering thought would affect her still malleable mind. However, the subsequent events would ease Blake of her doubts.

Yang withdrew the key and stared at it for a moment. Through this small piece of metal, she would return home and could continue her life with new knowledge and understanding—of both reassuring and haunting varieties—ascertained from her time with her partner's parents. She sighed and looked to Blake who nodded. They both knew now that their trip was finally over and that they could rest as soon as they passed through the door. Yang inserted the key, turned it, and at the sound of a soft clicking noise, she opened it. The inside of the house was as Blake remembered from when she first arrived on that middle-June day—the place seemed comfortable, welcoming, and absolutely quiet.

In an instant, the Faunus' vision was obscured, leaving her nearly at a loss for what was occurring, but she had been able to hear a quiet grunt from her partner. At first, she believed that one of her teammates had attacked due to the natural unexpectedness of someone suddenly unlocking the door to a house occupied by huntresses—warriors who were trained to strike at a moment's notice. However, it took only a second to realize that what had obscured her vision had been a flurry of rose petals, now floating to the floor as the girl in red cheered, "Yang! You're back!" The grunt that came from the blonde had been her reaction to the running hug that she had only just been able to withstand.

Any trace of past doubt on Yang's countenance was now nonexistent. She smiled widely and gleefully, hugging her sister in a hold far less delicate than any Blake had ever been in. "You bet I am!" she cheered back. "And the house isn't burnt down! Fancy that." Ruby giggled, holding one of the happiest smiles Blake had ever seen from the young girl despite the number of times during the past year where she had attempted to distance herself from her sister's affections. Ruby's smile did not wane in sincerity until the moment Yang tightened the hug and lifted her. "Oh, I've missed you so much, you don't even understand!"

Yang closed her eyes and began shaking the poor girl around like a ragdoll—she definitely found her energy and enthusiasm again, Blake thought amusedly. Ruby's smile had disappeared and her face flushed from a lack of oxygen. "Yeah, I missed you, too," she wheezed before looking to the Faunus. "Blake," she attempted to whisper, "help."

The girl in question could not help but quietly chuckle at this show of sisterly love. However, the humor she found in this situation did not dissuade her from putting a hand on her partner's shoulder, silently telling Yang to ease her grip. The blonde's grin did not falter, but she dropped her sister nonetheless, allowing Ruby to unsteadily land on her feet as she attempted to catch her breath. "Aw, you're no fun," Yang teased. "You think you're too cool for hugs just because some guy made you team leader."

"That's," Ruby managed between gasps of air, "the price of growing up, I guess."

"Whoa, now. Don't push it, little sister. I said you were cool, not grown up—there's a big difference."

"What? I'm totally grown up!" As the sisters went about this exchange of Ruby supposedly being mature and Yang choosing not to believe that her little sister could ever grow up, Blake placed their bags on the carpet before closing the door behind them. She had no intention of interrupting their conversation as she found it endearing and did not want to spoil the moment.

Eventually, Yang was able to end this light-hearted quarrel with a smirk and a flippant "Whatever." Neither sister seemed the least bit upset by the exchange, instead smiling all the wider because of it. "So," Yang began, "what have you been up to while we were gone?" Strangely enough, Blake saw the young girl stiffen slightly at the question—it was a nearly invisible reaction, but Blake saw her twitch and knew that something was off. It was apparent Ruby did not intend to answer for her own reasons, leading Yang to press, "Oh, come on! You must have done something fun while I was away. I taught you better than to do nothing and be boring, so come on! Tell me!"

"I…Uh…Hmm…" It had become painfully apparent that Ruby had something to say but lacked the means of saying it. She suddenly seemed uncomfortable and had begun toying with whichever part of her cape came nearest to her fingers. Yang's smile began to flatten as her brow raised. Both she and Blake knew that something was amiss and yet neither had the slightest inclinations as to what was presently bothering the youth. Perhaps, Blake mused, she had broken something in the house and was embarrassed to admit this—although, this was the only reasonable thought that came to mind at the present instant, but it could not be said to be fact or even feasible because such a claim lacked sufficient evidence for the Faunus. Fortunately, Blake's postulations were halted by the person who would eventually give the answers they sought.

The young Faunus' ears perked and brought her attention to the soft tapping of heeled boots against the carpeted floor by the hallway. The three in the foyer turned with varied expressions to the odd sight of the immaculate, snowy heiress that walked their way. It is to say that this sight was odd because the girl in white came bearing what could only be approximated as two gifts, for the first object being wrapped neatly in paper of a frosted azure color and the second, found to be far smaller than the other (the first gift being nearly the length of one hand held flat) seemed to have been haphazardly wrapped in crimson. What came off as even stranger was the expression that the heiress had. Under normal circumstances, Weiss Schnee's outward emotion could be categorized as either annoyed or condescending—neither of which were fitting sentiments for the unabashed smile she presently held. It was this smile that had caused the aforementioned varied looks on the parts of her teammates. Among the other two, Blake's expression was the most neutral, being that she had seen Weiss smile on multiple occasions. Yang seemed more than a little wary of this pleasant demeanor while Ruby looked to her partner for only a brief second. Had Blake paid attention to the youngest of them, she would have noticed a coloration on her features reminiscent of her hood.

"Welcome home," greeted Weiss warmly. "I apologize if my driver accepted you with an…unruly expression. I was not having a good day at the time I told him to say that to you." She came to stand beside her partner, retaining the smile as though it was a natural look for her. While the sight of a happy Weiss was a charming one, it was also a surprising one that kept Yang's brow aloft and telling of her distrust.

"Yeah," Yang drawled warily, "hey yourself." She flashed a curious look Blake's way to which the Faunus shrugged noncommittally.

"I trust your flight back proved more convenient than when you left." Admittedly, even Blake found this demeanor odd for the heiress. She would not complain about it because it was a nice change of pace from her usual, cold self, but it was odd nonetheless. "Those early morning flights truly are a nasty business. I just hope you two fared better than when you left—all bleary eyed and disgruntled." She barked a seemingly sincere yet tellingly excited laugh.

"Yeah," Yang said again in the same distrusting tone as before, "we were fine."

"And you, Blake! How were your parents? Healthy and welcoming, I would hope." The girl in question simply raised an eyebrow at this peculiar positivity being directed at her. Fortunately, she needed not answer as Weiss suddenly tutted "Ah!" and waved off the inquiry. "What am I doing, prying for information? You two must be tired after your travels. Would you like me to help you with your luggage?"

This was the point at which the two homecoming partners looked at each other and decided something was doubtlessly amiss. Weiss had been a helpful teammate at many points during the past year, but not once did she volunteer herself and never still did she help when physical labor would be required of her. For this, the blonde warned, "Ruby, step away from that woman. I don't know who she is, but _that_ is not Weiss. Whatever that is, it gives me the creeps."

This comment suddenly brought about a characteristic glower from the heiress to replace her rare expression, bringing the conversation down to an expected level of barely tolerant disdain. "I see you have not lost your _gripping_ sense of humor in these past few days. Pity. I try to speak peacefully and yet you continue to see me as your enemy. I thought that we could have moved past this by now."

"Never mind!" Yang chirped, keeping her attention on Ruby. "I was wrong—just surprised that Weiss could admit she had a bad day for once in her life." She looked to the heiress. "So, what's with the boxes? Is your company in the mail business now?"

Weiss sighed, seemingly shaking off her reactive hostility and allowing the tone of the conversation to cool somewhat before she spoke again. "No, these are for you. Ruby and I prepared gifts for your birthday, but we learned of your intent to spend the day in…Sierra, was it? Regardless, Ruby convinced me to get you something as a means of building a bridge between us." Yang lost her suspicious look for one more attentive and calm. "As much as I hate to say it, there is a divide between us that will have to be crossed at one point or another. For efficiency's sake, I propose sooner rather than later and, if you would allow me, I hope that this," she extended the blue-white box, "will be a means of nearing that goal."

Yang looked uncertain for a moment—not distrusting; merely caught off-guard—but she pocketed her key and accepted the gift nonetheless. "You know you didn't have to get me this, right? You don't owe me anything and even though I mess with you, you're still my friend. There's not really a bridge to build." She sighed and looked to the present in her hands. "Well, thanks anyways. I probably should open this, right? I mean you went through the trouble and all." At first, the blonde's speech showed a sense of decorum, but as she continued on, her excitement for the gift seemed to get the better of her.

Beneath the wrapping of the parcel was found to be a box of metallic construct, latched shut and bearing the crest of the Schnee family. Weiss cleared her throat, catching the blonde's auditory attention. "I will admit that shopping for you proved difficult as Blake can attest." The girl in reference blinked before realizing the purpose of Weiss bringing her to the jewelry store and deciding that such a gift would be inappropriate coming from but a friend. "I do not know much about you other than your affinity for combat and your inane urge to build something absurd to solve a problem than use your wit, so I asked your sister." The heiress smiled gracefully at her partner. "She suggested something practical—actually, something that would benefit your weapons—and that is what I got you." Yang unlatched the box and found a line of what looked to be shotgun shells. "They are propulsion rounds—a prototype ammunition from the Schnee Dust Company that, as the name suggests, will propel you in the direction opposite where you point your weapon rather quickly. I got the idea after remembering your…performance on initiation day and how you seemed to enjoy your moment of flight."

"Wow," was all Yang could say for the moment as she simply touched the doubtlessly expensive shells. There were not many from what Blake could see—perhaps a dozen or two at the most—but this scarcity only seemed to further the impression that they were cutting-edge and effective. "I mean…wow. I don't think I'll ever be able to use these 'cause I kinda wanna pull them apart and learn to make them myself, but man, these are cool." She looked up to meet her teammate's pleased smile with a warm one of her own. "Thanks, Weiss. You know, you're not as bad as I sometimes think you are."

"What high praise," the heiress quipped.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Those are your compliments for the decade; don't spend them all in one place." The team laughed at this in their respective ways as they accepted the fact that they were rudimentarily reunited. Though Blake had been quiet throughout the conversations, she did not feel a need to speak and found her current reticence comforting as it had been during their time at Beacon. These laughs were followed by a calm silence that soon enough gave way to Yang's curiosity. "Well, thanks for the present, Weiss, but I see that you have another. And if I was to wager who it was from, I'd probably be right. Do you mind if I see it?"

"Umm," Ruby sounded, interrupting her partner's transferral of the small, vaguely cubic gift. "Yang, I don't think now's the time to open that."

"Why not?"

The young girl nervously began poking her fingers together. "Well, you see, I kinda found it in…mom's belongings a while ago."

"Oh." Yang nodded her head in understanding, but suddenly her eyes widened in the most shockingly astonished expression Blake had ever seen on the girl. "Oh! You mean…?" Ruby nodded. "Oh. Well, yeah; no, it's not a good idea to open it around these two." She turned to her partner with a sheepish look about her. "Sorry, Blake. I've gotta keep this one a secret for now." She looked back to Ruby. "How in the world did you even find this? I thought dad kept it."

Ruby shook her head. "I asked Qrow where dad put it and he said it was with all of the other stuff mom left here."

"You mean she didn't take it with her?"

"Nope. Must've been too valuable."

"Yeah, I'll say." Yang seemed overwhelmed by receiving this smaller gift despite not opening it. Blake could not say that she was not curious as to what it was, but Yang had told her—rather, implored her—to leave this subject alone for the time being. She had an idea of what could be within the wrapping, but she doubted this idea and brushed it off almost immediately. "Ruby, I don't know what to say. Do you know what you're doing by giving this to me?"

"Yep!" The younger girl smiled cheerily and with no lack of confidence. "Mom would probably want you to have it. I don't think she'd think you were ready for it yet, but maybe one day." Oddly enough, Ruby's smile flashed Blake's way for half a second and in that time, the Faunus saw what could only be described in her mind as acceptance—acceptance as another person and, assumingly, as a member of their team. It is to say that this look the leader gave was of acceptance, but not in the ways the young Faunus believed.

Suddenly, the girl in red was pulled into another hug by her sister as the blonde said, "Thanks, Ruby. I know I'm not ready to use this—it's probably _way_ too soon for me to even have it—but one day for sure." Ruby was able to hug back because she was not being smothered or crushed in this particular hold. They would remain in this state only for a second, showing gratitude and happiness from returning home, before they separated. It was then that Yang said, "So, you never told me what went on while I was gone." Ruby's smile faltered and became a look of subtle fear while Weiss' calm expression shifted ever so slightly. "Something _must_ have happened! Why was Weiss so happy when we came back? She's never that nice to me."

Weiss' expression was surprisingly not of offense, but instead of a very subtle blush and of uncharacteristic uncertainty. Ruby looked away and was suddenly seized by a very convenient coughing fit. Yang's eyes narrowed. "What's going on?" She was quickly losing patience and must have had similar thoughts to Blake's. The reactions on the other partnership's parts were telling of the fact that the blonde and the Faunus had been correct in thinking something was amiss. "Ruby," Yang asserted, "what's going on? What did I miss?"

"Well," the young girl drawled without the intent of finishing the thought. She laughed nervously for a moment but stifled this reaction just as quickly. Weiss sent her a harsh glare before recomposing herself. However, this recomposing was not completely effective because the blush still lingered on the otherwise pale girl's cheeks as her eyes trained not on the floor in front of her, but on Ruby's boots. This reaction, blush, and line of sight told Blake that whatever it was they did not want to speak about concerned both Ruby and Weiss, yet this was natural as they were the only people in the house for the past three days. Ruby's shying away from her sister's inquiry, however, seemed to indicate that their secret was one that Yang would likely object to. Because of the conversations Blake had had with Yang over the three days they were away, she had a very good idea as to what the two girls were hiding.

"Weiss?" Blake asked, knowing that she had more influence over the heiress than over her partner's sister. Weiss sent a trepid glare her way as she awaited her continuance. "Would you like me to tell her?" Of course, Blake did not know if her prediction was correct, making this question a gambit to draw an answer out of the heiress. An underhanded tactic though it was, this was intended to defuse the situation before Yang and her short temper could make assumptions of their own.

The glare held as Weiss grumbled something incoherent but undoubtably defeated. Her gaze turned to Yang and in that moment, it shifted from defiant to apologetic, then to confident, and finally back to apologetic. "I…" she attempted to begin but found herself rewording whatever it is she had to say under the distrusting gaze of the blonde. "We—that is, Ruby and I—while you were away," she was attempting to stall, "came to an eventual and mutual agreement to—and I should stress the dispassionate logic behind our decision as it is vital to the understanding of our predicament and circumstance—"She was cut off.

"We're together," Ruby blurted out and the room then fell to silence.

Immediately, the young girl began looking around nervously at all the faces before her, scanning for any possible doubt or upset that could have come from her outburst, yet she could not find any emotion amongst the three as the revelation was still taking an effect over them. Rather, it is to say that Blake was not awe-struck by this new information for she had foreseen it in her prediction; for this, she allowed a small, prideful smirk to grace her features which Ruby immediately saw and must have understood as accepting. Weiss and Yang, however, were in differing degrees of shock, causing the taller of the two to drop the box of ammunition and the shorter to stare wide-eyed at her partner. Seeing these reactions, Blake's smirk disappeared as she feared that this admission—after hearing from Yang during the trip about her distaste for a relationship between her sister and the heiress—would cause conflict. She was tired by this point and Yang was as well, but protective urges seemed to have become a motivating factor in the blonde's life, leading the young Faunus to believe that conflict was not only feasible, it was impending.

Again, Ruby interrupted. "Wait, wait, wait! Yang, please don't be mad! We talked about this, remember? You said if me and Weiss agreed on everything, we'd be able to try out dating for a little while. We're not doing anything bad, I promise! And it's not even serious yet!" At this latter exclamation, Weiss returned to reality and sent a questioning glare her partner's way.

Yang must have seen this emotion because her aura flared, sending a momentary wave of heat throughout the room as her eyes, now scarlet, bore into the heiress. "Oh, I'm not mad." She was furious. In an instant, she pocketed the red-wrapped present and marched over to where the girl in white stood. She forcefully grabbed Weiss' arm and the heiress seemed to know that instigating conflict at this moment would only prove disadvantageous, causing her to submit and move with Yang toward the hallway and their rooms. "We're just gonna have a little talk." Truthfully, Blake did not know if this statement was meant for Weiss or Ruby, but the effect was still the same—both girls seemed terrified. "I'll be back later to talk to you, Ruby, so don't even think about running off anywhere." The young leader did not have time to reply as her sister and partner vanished into the darkness of the hallway.

The door to Yang's room was slammed shut, rattling the fixtures on the walls and marking the beginning of what would be a rather heated discussion between the two. Ruby continued to stare at the dark hall, presumably hoping for Weiss' (who was apparently now the young leader's girlfriend) safety. Her fears could not be said to be completely unfounded as both Yang and Weiss had proven unable to control their actions when they spawned from anger or annoyance. Yet it could not be said that this conversation would end in a sword being drawn or a gauntlet being pointed at the other—they both cared for Ruby and to deprive her of either would be cruel. There would most certainly be shouting and arguments, but there would be no physical conflict.

Despite this sight of her concerned leader, Blake could not help but reflect for a moment upon the manner in which Weiss followed Yang. There had been neither complaint given nor grunt of pain that most likely came with the blonde's grip. Weiss had been strangely compliant for who Blake thought her to be. In the Faunus' mind, the heiress of the Schnee Dust Company should have been more vocal about her treatment and far more argumentative when it came to Yang's hostility towards the relationship. Had Blake been in a similar situation—and, while she was with her mother, she had—she would have fought to uphold her relationship with Yang no matter what obstacles came in her way. Yet now Yang was the obstacle and Weiss was having to explain herself to the mother figure instead of Ruby.

Ruby. Blake snapped out of her reflective pause to see the girl still staring down the hall from which muted shouts could barely be heard even with enhanced senses. The sight of breaking hope on the part of the cheerful girl hurt, but it is to say in a narrative aside that this pain did not spawn from the Faunus' viewing of a contradictory sight, but instead from seeing her partner's sister in pain and feeling that it was on some level her responsibility to take care of Ruby—not as a teammate, but something akin to a surrogate sister. This was an odd sensation for the only child because she had no understanding of how to go about consoling the young girl, yet her pride would not allow her to think that this was a challenge she could not surmount. Because of this inherent confidence, she decided against moving the suitcases for the time being and instead walked up behind Ruby and placed a hand on her shoulder. "It will be all right," she said. "They might argue for a bit, but they will eventually figure something out."

Ruby looked up at her with silver eyes that seemed nearly hopeless. "Are you sure?"

"Honestly, no. Our partners have a track record of inconsistency and general disdain for each other." This caused Ruby's gaze to sober even further before fixating on the ground. However, Blake knew what she was saying. "But one thing is certain: they care for you. Whatever happens, it will be in your best interest. Come on, let's go sit down." She did not wait for Ruby to respond, choosing instead to lead the young girl into the living room. In the time it took the two to find seats that allowed them to sit close to each other (knowing Yang, Blake thought that Ruby would need someone close by in times of emotional duress), Ruby's disposition had lightened a little, but not by any margin that could be perceived as reassured. For this, Blake said, "Weiss will be fine. I am certain she has dealt with worse than a scolding by Yang."

"But what about Yang?" Ruby asked. "Weiss knows how to argue really well. Do you think Yang will be all right, too?"

Blake nodded and smiled thoughtfully, causing a confused look to come to her teammate's face. "She'll be fine. Weiss may be cruel at times, but Yang's strong—you know that. I've only seen her falter once when she was in this kind of state and that was when she was arguing with my mother."

Ruby's apparent confusion remained, but her look changed to that of barely concealed fear once more. "Then Weiss is going to get yelled at, right?"

Blake's eyes widened in realization at the doubt she had accidentally planted in her teammate's mind. "Oh, no! Of course not! She's—" Unfortunately, she was interrupted by a rather loud shout of "What?" that came from Yang down the hall. This caused the Faunus to wince at being proven immediately wrong and the younger girl to stare down at her lap. "Well," Blake began again uneasily, "I'm sure she will be fine. Weiss is one of the smartest people I know and she has been taught to debate and bargain." The leader's demeanor did not budge. "Ruby, I'm positive that no matter what they say to each other, you and Weiss will still be together. Even if your sister disagrees, the relationship will hold if you still care for her. You do care for Weiss, correct?"

"Yeah?" Ruby replied hesitantly, moving her gaze upward and raising an eyebrow as she said this.

This allowed Blake to muster the warmest, most reassuring smile she could. "Well, she cares for you as well. I've seen the way you two look at each other; it would be almost impossible for Yang to stop you from being together."

With this final reassurance, a blush came to Ruby's face, bringing with it a hopeful smile. "Thanks, Blake."

Blake simply smiled as she watched her teammate regain the positivity that so characterized her. It was a warm feeling that came to her after seeing the fruits of her reassurance; Ruby's happiness was reminiscent of Yang's in a way, being that it was hopeful—not only for the future, but for others around her and the good that could possibly come from them. Blake expected that Ruby was conflicted as to whom she should give more of her care in this situation, but in the end, she cared for both her sister and her now girlfriend. The Faunus let this silence linger for a comfortable moment, allowing the previous subject to lessen in importance and ensuring that no further outbursts from the room down the hall would interrupt their conversation. Eventually, Blake began again with the intent of moving the subject to happier, more informative matters. "So," she said, "when did you come to this decision? It must have been in the past few days because Weiss still seemed excited when Yang and I returned."

"Well," Ruby laughed nervously, "it's kind of a long story."

"If you would rather not talk about it—"

"No, no! It's fine. I mean, you aren't going to tell Weiss or Yang I told you this, right?" Blake shook her head. "Well, then I guess it's okay." She took a deep breath, most likely preparing herself to describe what had happened, placing events in in an order either chronological or categorized by importance. Blake could sympathize with her leader's hesitation as this confession was no doubt taxing on the girl who was still relatively young and, as far as the Faunus knew, similarly inexperienced with relationships. "Well, it kinda happened all of the sudden—like, _really_ all of the sudden. The day after you guys left, Weiss woke me up at around three in the morning. She wasn't mad or tired or anything, just really serious. She said she'd been thinking a lot about stuff and wanted to know if I've been doing the same. I think about a lot of stuff, so I said 'Yeah' and she gave me this weird look. It's like it wasn't Weiss looking at me, but someone nicer—not that Weiss isn't nice or anything like that, but she can be, you know…grouchy sometimes."

Blake allowed herself a quiet chuckle at the innocent description of Weiss' seemingly ever-present ire. Fortunately enough, Ruby seemed to notice this silent action and started to laugh as well, clearing the solemnity that threatened to overshadow the spirited girl's natural expression. "Anyways," she said as her giggles began to die down, "she woke me up in the middle of the night and asked me if I was thinking about stuff. Then she told me she'd been thinking about me and I told her that I'd been thinking about her too—I mean, why wouldn't I be thinking of new ways for us to kill more Grimm? I didn't say _that_ to her because she looked really serious, but it's what I thought. I wasn't really awake at the time, kinda being half out of it 'cause she just woke me up, but I knew something was going on. Then out of nowhere she asked me what I thought about us being together.

"Now, I know I can be a little dense at times, but I think my response to this takes the cake." A laugh could be heard trying to make its way into her words, but she was only just able to contain it. "I told her, 'But I thought we were already partners!'" At this, the laugh was released and the Faunus joined in too.

"You didn't say that, did you?" Blake did not doubt the girl, but instead somewhat feared for her, knowing that Weiss' reaction would be furious if not humorous.

"Uh-huh! You should've seen her face; I've never seen it so red!" The two continued to laugh for a moment until Blake gradually composed herself for the rest of the tale. "She looked so mad that I thought she was going to yell at me, but she didn't. Then she explained that she meant the dating kind of 'together.' It's not that I'm ignorant to the whole dating scene, I've just never thought about it myself. Yang's had boys over, but they never really worked out for more than a few of days, so I thought, 'Why bother?'" There was a slight pain felt in Blake's mind at the mention of what was likely her girlfriend's past relationships. Furthermore, the fact that they only worked out for a few days concerned her because, in her mind, two weeks was still a rather short period of time and she felt that there was the slightest of possibilities that their relationship could fail because of this timeframe. Fortunately for the introspective Faunus, Ruby's continued speech was able to sufficiently distract her. "But I've had these…feelings about Weiss. She's kinda different from everyone else, you know? Not like rich or famous or anything, but it's like she cares about the smallest mistakes I make."

She was attempting to rationalize her irrational sentiments for the heiress and Blake found this a sweet enough concept to pull her mind away from past romances that were superfluous in their entire existence. "You're saying that she is trying to help you improve yourself in ways not related to combat?"

"Yeah, except she's not like a teacher, really. More like a friend—a really good friend, I guess. Sure, she gets mad at me a lot, but I think it's because she wants to see me do better. Did you know that there are dinner forks _and _salad forks? I didn't, but Weiss taught me that. It's not like boring class stuff; she's actually nice about it and goes the extra mile to help me understand something. Sometimes it feels like she's treating me like a kid, but I know she doesn't mean it like that. She's…" Ruby sighed happily. "She's really nice, Blake, and I guess I have thought about her like _that_ once or twice. I didn't know what it'd be like dating someone, but I was willing to give it a shot if she was.

"So, I told her that and she just smiled. She didn't do anything except tell me 'Good night' before she went back to sleep, leaving me awake by myself to think what just happened. It's not normal to be woken up in the middle of the night to be asked out, but giving a response and then just getting a smile back? I didn't know what to think about that. I eventually got back to sleep, and when we woke up, we talked about it. She said that we were dating now and that all we needed to do was iron out a few details. We just talked for a few hours, sometimes seriously, sometimes not, but I had fun the entire time. I mean, when Weiss isn't angry at everyone, she's actually really nice. I never thought too much about us being together until she asked about lunch." She winced at the apparent memory. "I guess she wasn't in the joking mood when I asked her if it was a date because she said no. That was kinda really awkward."

"So, you two have not been on a date yet?"

"Not really." She did not seem too disappointed, but there was a tone of regret in her denial. "Yang and I talked about what would happen when I started going out with someone. She said that before things went anywhere, she'd have to approve and because you guys were away, Weiss and I couldn't do much. That, and Weiss doesn't like the word 'date' very much; she kept calling it an 'outing.'"

"Have you been on many outings, then?"

"Just the lunch. It was kinda nice but kinda quiet as well. Weiss knows how to talk and everything, but once we got to that table, it was like she'd never gone out with anyone before." Judging by the way Ruby had said this, Blake figured that the young leader might have believed that Weiss must have been on numerous dates before. However, it was apparent to the Faunus that the heiress had little to no experience with such an event despite coming from a family in which arranged suitors were to be expected—at least from an outsider's perspective they were expected. "It was the first time for me, so I didn't have much to say except ask what she thought you and Yang were doing. Probably wasn't the best idea to ask that, but it was all I could think of."

"I'm guessing that she was angered by that question."

"A little bit, but it wasn't too bad. She didn't really get mad at me all day which was really nice and she actually seemed kinda happy even though she kept trying to hide her smile." The young girl paused, likely reflecting on that day fondly as Blake often did with that day in the park two weeks ago. She and Ruby were alike in that they had been previously inexperienced with romance and had seemingly (Blake could only be certain about her own thoughts) believed that such relationships were afterthoughts to their respective goals. The difference between the two in this regard, Blake thought, was that Ruby was more prone to sentimentality, thus causing the slowly growing smile that tugged at her lips. "I don't know. We're just trying this out for now, but I think I really like it. It's nice seeing Weiss smile, you know?"

Blake smirked. Every time Yang smiled, it was as if she was able to return to a time before the White Fang, before her leave, and before she had learned to distrust the rest of the world. It was calming and it was rejuvenating—any grin from the blonde could make a cloudy day shine and the cold world around them temperate. The thought alone of being the cause of such a smile caused this Faunus' smirk, so it is to say that Blake did know what Ruby meant when she said this. "I think Weiss is very fortunate to have someone care for her as much as you do."

This brought back Ruby's blush. "Thanks, Blake, but I think I'm the lucky one for having her. You know that at the start of the year, I thought she hated me, right? I'm just happy that she likes me now." She seemed contented with this fact and rightfully so. Gaining the favor of the heiress was no small feat for anyone, being that her more than apparent trust issues and façades of intolerance kept most who came in contact with her out of her life. After their first day at Beacon, Blake had also been certain that Weiss held severe reservations against the girl in red. Surprisingly enough, Ruby had managed to overcome this initial contempt to eventually become a friend of the heiress, grounding her in reality and showing her that life was not composed of only people out to subvert her. They were good for each other, Blake thought, the cheerful, if socially awkward girl and the cold, pedantic, and reluctantly refined heiress. The young Faunus did not have much time to have her thoughts linger on what her teammates' futures could be, because Ruby suddenly asked, "What about you? What did you and Yang do while you were gone?"

Blake hummed noncommittally, internally reasoning whether or not to tell Ruby everything that had happened. There had, of course, been positive moments during the trip, but there had also been somber realizations that left Yang in a distraught state before they returned. She decided against divulging all of her secrets, simply saying, "It's a long story as well."

"Then why don't you start with your parents?" Ruby seemed genuinely interested, bringing a smile to the Faunus. "What are they like? Were they just like you remember?"

To some part of Blake, this inquiry was sad, not because of the tone or intention behind the questions, but because of what the questions meant coming from this specific girl. She who had lost her mother at an early age and her father as the years progressed would prove to be an unwittingly sobering questioner when it came to the subject of parents. Though Yang had said that Ruby did not remember much about her mother, she still had memories and, from Blake's experience, memories could be utterly debilitating if provoked.

As such, Blake believed that she had to be tactful so to not upset the positivity that now seemed to fragilely teeter on the edge of reflective. "It has been a long time since I last saw them, Ruby, and we were not on the best of terms with each other then, so I can't really say I had high expectations for them in greeting me with open arms." Ruby seemed to regret asking about this, causing her momentary frown which was quickly dismissed by Blake. "But they did. I will admit that I was a little scared when Yang and I first arrived, but they were kind to us." The frown disappeared immediately and was replaced by a look of excited eagerness that only the younger sister of Yang could muster. "You have talked to my mother over the phone, so you have some idea of what she is like."

Ruby nodded. "Yeah, she was kinda nice even though I didn't understand most of what she was saying."

This approximation of Lilian's character caused a small laugh on Blake's part. "She tends to have that effect on people, I will admit. I hope she did not scare you like she did Yang."

"Wait!" Ruby gasped. "She scared Yang?"

"You know how Weiss can be distant and mean sometimes but still manage to have a point?" The young girl nodded. "Well, that's who my mother naturally is. Yang is smart, but I think my mother knows more than both of us combined and she will not refrain from using that knowledge at any point in time. When I was younger, she was a professor at a community college near Sierra, but I believe she stopped after I began expressing an interest in the White Fang. I don't think that I was the cause of her resignation, but I am certain that my leave played a large role in her own as well. Needless to say, she seemed to feel a little betrayed because I left, but I cannot fault her for that."

"So your mom was a professor? What'd she teach?"

Blake smirked at her teammate's dismissal of the remorseful thoughts in what had been said last. "I'm not completely sure. I've never asked and she's never told me, but I believe she is involved with literature in some way."

"Huh. Makes sense," Ruby mused. "You know, I've always had this idea that if you ever chose not to be a huntress, you'd make a great teacher. I don't know, you have that bookworm thing going on and then your mom being a teacher brought the idea back." Blake raised her brows in faux offence. "Not that there's anything wrong with that! I'm just saying you know some of our textbooks better than the professors do and you have a lot to say when it comes to the White Fang. Sorry if I said something wrong."

"No, it's all right. I'm not offended at all—surprised, actually. I've never really considered teaching before. Speaking isn't really my strong suit, after all." Ruby looked as though she was about to voice her disapproval of this latter statement, but Blake shook her head. "Regardless, she did not trust Yang immediately after meeting her. I am sure that she liked her, but she did not trust her. Though, she did eventually came to accept our relationship after no small amount of explaining and convincing."

"What about your dad?" Ruby suddenly asked. "If he's anything like mine, he wouldn't really like someone dating his daughter."

"Actually, he was supportive almost immediately."

"Well, that's good."

Blake nodded. "I think so. Yang seems to like him and he trusts her already. Hopefully they will get along well enough."

"I'm sure they will," Ruby said. "Maybe one day I could meet them, too? I don't know why, but I just want to see what you're parents are like." Blake's answer to this came in the form of a simple "Perhaps" because she did not know when she would next see her parents, if she ever would again. The meeting between her parents and the team leader seemed a harmless enough concept, but it did not seem realistic. They had only invited Yang to visit because Blake pressed the point that they would be partners for the coming years. Though, it could be reasoned that a similar imploration for the team's leader would be well met had she an ulterior motive to have the three speak to each other. With her partner, she wanted Yang to meet her parents and for her parents to meet Yang so that the relationship could be approved of by both parties. With Ruby, however, there was no sort of necessary conversation that bound her to the parents.

With the passing of this subject, Ruby was eventually able to redirect the conversation back to what Blake and Yang did in Sierra, asking if they had done anything other than speak to Lilian and Cole. "Well, when I talked to my parents over the phone, they reminded me about a festival that was occurring in Sierra and they asked if I would like to come to it. The festival was created to show solidarity between Vale and Mistral; although, it's basically one big party for everyone in the area." Blake smiled at the memories of that day (especially of those in the later hours) before she smirked at one in particular. Perhaps it was the aforementioned attachment to the leader as somewhat of a distant surrogate sister, but Blake felt compelled to tease, "There were a few rides there—one of which Yang said you might know."

Realization dawned on young Ruby as her mouth opened in dismay. "Wait! You didn't." Blake nodded, knowing that her teammate had assumed correctly. "That's no fair! Why didn't you invite me along, too? Teacups are, like, a thing for Yang and me." She crossed her arms and huffed, but it soon became apparent that this was only a playful show of faux disappointment as a smirk eventually came to her lips. "So," she said in a tone that could almost be described as devious, "how'd it go?"

Blake smirked back. "Aside from the vertigo that I had somehow forgotten about, it was fantastic."

She needed not say more because the young girl's smile became an excited grin that was coupled with a cheer of "Aw! I _knew_ you and Yang would work out!" At this, she pumped her fist triumphantly before reveling in her correct prediction for a moment. Eventually, she asked, "So, what else did you do?"

Unfortunately, Blake could not answer because her ears perked at the incredibly faint click of a faraway lock and the opening of the door to Yang's room. Ruby had been alerted by this second noise and turned her head to look down the hall. Suddenly, the light mood of the conversation fell away to an understanding that they were about to deal with the fallout of a presumably heated argument. As much reassurance as Blake had given, she did not feel entirely confident that Yang would support her sister's relationship. Even if she and Weiss were supposed friends as the blonde had stated and the heiress had attempted to prove, it would be incorrect to say that no hostility existed between the two; their personalities fundamentally clashed in many regards. The result of this clashing of personalities was difficult for the Faunus to look at.

The heiress' natural visage had somehow become paler; her face blanched and her vision focused on nothing in particular as though she had faced death incarnate. She was shaken to say the very least. Fortunately, there were no marks on her skin or clothing, proving that Yang had not completely lost her temper, but just because no physical marks could be seen does not mean that pain did not exist. Ruby called out to her but received no response, the girl in white instead moving wordlessly to sit beside her partner.

In an instant, Ruby brought one of the frail, shaking hands into her own, causing its owner to merely stare at the grip for a moment before looking back into the void. This was a far cry from the Weiss who previously stuttered to mention such an action occurring between herself and her partner. Now she was far too consumed by grounded terror to react in any approachable manner. It was obvious that Ruby wanted to help and, to an extent, Blake did as well, but this Weiss seemed content to mull over whatever dark thoughts plagued her mind.

Perhaps Yang had beaten her in the heiress' own game of logic. Though it is to say that whatever event caused such a reaction on the part of the cold, irritable girl should never be referred to as something as trivializing as "a game" and Blake knew this. She began to assume what had happened in Yang's room, but the only factual evidence that she had was that the door had been slammed and locked and Yang shouts had only been heard once. Judging by the expression, Blake thought for a moment that her partner must have convinced Weiss not to stay with Ruby, but Weiss had allowed the young leader to hold her hand and this meant that hope was not completely lost.

Moreover, Blake began to believe that the heiress might have gotten her way because a fuming Yang marched in from the hall, gauntlets off and fists clenched. The blonde seemed conflicted, but more often than not, she looked angry, as shown by the rapid shifting of her irises' color from violet to red and back again. She never took a seat, choosing instead to pace insistently in front of the other three as the heiress' gaze slowly locked onto her.

There was never a moment when she seemed as though she did not have something to say, but not once did she choose to do so, instead grumbling incoherently and sending the occasional glare Weiss' way. This did not go on for longer than a minute before Blake asked, "Yang, what's wrong?"

For an agonizingly long and scalding second, a scarlet glare focused on Blake but it lost its power almost instantly, turning back to lilac and deeply apologetic. In that moment, however, Blake had felt the full force of her partner's fury and was taken aback by a small degree. "It's…" Yang did not say anything of importance at first, but then let out a breath that she must have been holding for a while. "Sorry, Blake. It's nothing." Though the phrasing of this apology could seem half-hearted, the frustrated sigh that came with it told the Faunus all that she needed to know about the situation and because of this, Blake was compelled to forgive her. Yang was distracted and they were both tired; their minds were not in their correct states and Blake could not fault her for this. "Ruby," the blonde suddenly said, a tone of seriousness making its way into her speech. The younger girl perked up. "C'mon. Let's go get some food to take out. I need to talk to you about Weiss and I don't think doing that here is a good idea right now." She glanced at the pale girl who was still quietly staring at her with heavily concealed contempt and fear.

"But—"

"No buts." The team leader fell once more into a discouraged state. Ruby squeezed Weiss' hand shortly before she stood and trudged over to her older sister. "It's all right," Yang sighed, sounding nearly remorseful as she put an arm over the cloaked girl. "I'm not gonna try to pull you away from her. Weiss and I talked about it and you're going to be allowed to go out, but we need to set some ground rules first."

"Ground rules?" Ruby seemed suddenly excited again, presumably glad that her new—and first—relationship would maintain, but she had a healthy skepticism about her as well. The small smile brought to her features allowed Yang one of her own, but it was smaller and as such, it was indicative of the reluctance that it so barely hid.

"Simple stuff," she assured. "Rules like curfews, I'd need to know where you're going, and no sleeping beside each other—keep to your own bunks. That sort of stuff." Ruby nodded in eager acceptance, seemingly unfazed by the restrictions placed on her relationship. Yang, however, lost her smile, causing Blake to worry. "All right, come on." She began to pull her sister out of the living room. "You can pick what we eat tonight just as long as you let me talk, all right?" As they left the room, Ruby hummed in the affirmative and this was followed by Yang's unenthused yell of, "We'll be right back, Blake. It won't take us long."

The young Faunus did not have an opportunity to respond before she heard the door to the garage quietly open and close somewhere else in the house. Some part of her felt dejected by her inability to respond in time because Yang was in pain and, from what she had seen from her other teammates, Blake knew that she would be the only person who could care for the blonde in this time. Weiss was out of the question due to her apparent fear and hostility and it is doubtful that Ruby could have helped in any way other than allowing Yang to be near her. Even then, this could not be considered "help" in the Faunus' mind; though, it could be reasoned that this logic was actually her own developed protectionism.

Yesterday, Blake had managed to dull her partner's pain for a short time, but had never once been able to completely keep away a paralyzing sentiment for long. Yang had proven this ability on many an occasion, barring instances where more deep-rooted pains arose, but those were beginning to soften as well. Her perceptiveness allowed her to see the faults in others while her selflessness served to turn said faults or insecurities into nonissues entirely. At the absolute most, Blake could consider herself observational and cynical. She believed that in small periods of discomfort, she could ease Yang's burden, but on days such this when Yang seemed inconsolably distressed, she felt powerless. During the ride home, she had been able to keep her partner relatively calm, but never completely helped. Now all Blake wanted was to have had the courage to stand from her seat and hug Yang before she left with Ruby. To know that her partner had been defeated and was having a difficult time composing herself pained Blake and left her to her own remorse.

However, introspection could wait because the young Faunus saw another who was in obvious discomfort. Yang was beyond her present reach and consolation, but Weiss was still here, gazing at the spot where her partner had been moments prior and was still perhaps salvageable from her recent experience. Blake believed that consoling her remaining teammate might ease the discomfort she felt from Yang's emotion by way of distraction. "Weiss?" she asked, taking the task of helping the heiress upon herself.

The girl in question looked up from the seat, meeting the Faunus' eyes with metered indifference and without a word. Unlike the others on the team, Blake did not feel as though Weiss needed any further questioning to understand the care that was being conveyed. She was smart enough to know that she was being challenged to conversation. However, the calling of her name was not to alert her to this challenge, but to let her know that the eventual conversation was not merely for the purpose of obtaining information, but for friendly reassurance.

Weiss' gaze remained steady for a moment before dropping suddenly. She took a stabilizing breath and eventually told her tale. "For all my life," she began, "I have received death threats, harassing phone calls, and even attempts on my family's life. I cannot say that the threats lessen in effect—nor do I think they ever will—but I can say that it gets easier, somehow. Eventually, you come to learn the parlance and grow accustomed to the mentions of danger that initially should shock a person. My father never mentioned this, but I believe he learned as well. After a while, you get used to the threats and harassment even if they never lose their potency—you of all people should know this, I'd wager. You begin to realize that most of the threats are hollow and most people who call are unwilling to meet you in person. And though their words sting, I know that most will not follow through with their actions." Weiss' gaze suddenly shot to focus on the Faunus'. "Yang is not one of those people. You _need_ to control your partner."

To say that Blake was caught off-guard would be an understatement. The glare Weiss now held was defensive and pointed, telling of the blame she placed on the Faunus for the blonde's apparent behavior. "Her threats are real—_very_ real—and I do not doubt for a second that she would act upon her promises if she had reason to suspect I had anything but Ruby's best interests in mind. You've seen her temper, so you have an idea of what she is capable of. But what I saw in there?" She shivered, breaking the glare for only a moment. "Blake, your partner is a frightening enigma. At one moment, she can be smiling and cheerful, but at the drop of a hat, she can set fire to whatever resolve I can muster with conviction that I have never before seen."

Her gaze softened and shifted to the spot where Ruby's hand had once been. "This is not only about my wellbeing, but yours as well. I should tell you considering you are my friend, I believe, and my de facto confidante that you must control your partner. If only one thing happens to Ruby that she feels is harmful, then your partner is liable to lose control. At the very best, she would make a fool of herself, but I shudder to think of what could possibly be the worst end to one instance of her rage."

The point of this conversation had initially been reassurance and consolation but quickly devolved into something the Faunus could not have expected. Though, it is to be said that some part of Blake knew that Weiss held scornful reservations that would inevitably reveal themselves through conversation. However, Blake knew of the blonde's impetuous fury before she made the decision to partner with her and had justly accounted for it, knowing concurrently that said fury could prove beneficial in future combat scenarios and the contrasting positivity would prove as balance for her negativity. Blake understood the threat that Yang created, but if she did not feel as though she could operate alongside this sort of emotion, she would not have chosen her as partner.

For this reason, Blake replied with more than an ounce of offense. "I am aware of Yang's anger, but I trust her. Whatever she did to threaten you was wrong and I will talk to her about it, but she is our friend—she is _your_ friend and has admitted it. If nothing else, Yang is loyal and I sincerely doubt that she would turn on you if it meant going against her sister's wishes."

"Loyal? To whom?" Not only did the heiress appear incredulous, she expressed it through guarded condescension. "If you mean to say that she is loyal to Ruby and her family, then I am well aware—it was hard not to be while she was telling me of the many ways she would harm me if I were to upset her sister in any way. Perhaps I may not have had many friends in my life nor have I had the best of relationships with my parents, so you must excuse my hesitation, but I must say that after that last conversation, I find Yang's words of friendship hollow."

"I have to respectfully disagree. I may be biased as well, but I know that if Yang gives her word, she intends to keep it. There certainly is a divide between the care she places on us and Ruby, but she is her sister and as such, they have had years to grow as close as they are now." At that moment, Weiss closed her eyes for an incredibly short, incredibly jealous second that Blake did not see nor would she have understood the reasons for. "But even though she cares for Ruby more, she still cares for us. I can understand your animosity towards her—I have talked to her about the comments she makes at your expense—but I promise that she sees you as a friend and a competent warrior. As you have confided in me, so has Yang, and I can assure that you are a friend to her."

Weiss was silent again, presumably at odds with the situation. Blake could not say which of them was correct in this instance or even if one of them could be correct, but the differing perceptions of Yang's character presented an impasse that seemed to show that this conversation (and, in effect, Weiss' perturbed state) had a very slight possibility of taking a positive turn. The means of allowing this, Blake planned, would be to allow this silence to linger for as long as it needed to so that the words she had said could be instilled as fact in the heiress' mind. Of course, she would not be the one to generate this quiet, but instead Weiss.

Whereas Yang's form of contemplative found her tapping either fingers or feet or even glancing sporadically at whatever could draw her attention, Weiss' was cold, calm, and indicative of life-long regret. Truly it was a harrowing silence that Blake had not expected to take hold over the room and soon thereafter was a point at which she wished it could be taken back. However, she knew now that this silence was beyond her control as Weiss simmered dismally at the revelation that Yang supposedly cared for her whilst simultaneously threatening her life. Blake could only sympathize with her at this moment rather than empathize, having little knowledge or experience at the sharp end of Yang's ire. She only knew of the blonde's loving loyalty, so she could not say that Weiss' interpretation was wrong, but Weiss had not seen the same side of Yang that Blake had. It must have been difficult for the heiress to come to terms with this idea of friendship and protectionism—surely it must have been harder than the Faunus' dealing with her partner's uncensored glare.

This silence would last until Blake could next find any slight movement that told of her teammate's willingness to stray from the subject that would undoubtedly remain on her mind long after today. During this wait, she observed the heiress for any sign of recovery, but failed in this regard because she had been surprised when Weiss suddenly said without any prior indication of speech, "I would rather not allow this matter to take precedence over what conversations we may have. So, as a means of forgetting about our previous conversation, I propose a new subject. I suppose you would like to hear about my situation with Ruby?"

Not only was the timing of this question startling, but the lack of emotion behind it as well. Weiss retained her controlled expression as she stared patiently at the Faunus. Blake, still coming to terms with the fact that Weiss could repress the resulting emotions of the argument so quickly, did not react. Her teammate must have understood this stagnation as a willingness to abide by her plan, allowing her to continue. "I assume that Ruby told you that we are dating?" This was a very confusing shift of conversational topic that Blake seemed more reluctant to accept than the speaker, but she nodded nonetheless. "And I assume that she told you how our decision came to be?" Again, Blake nodded, forgetting the promise she had made to Ruby. Weiss sighed wearily. "Why don't I phone my father and tell him, too? It seems everyone is learning about my private life these past few days."

"Weiss," Blake interrupted, still unsure as to how this conversation had moved away from feelings of distress and uncertainty to a new relationship. "What's going on? Why this sudden change of subject?"

"Fear does not befit me," said Weiss simply. "Blake, I appreciate your concern, I really do, but please allow this conversation to change course. I'd rather not dwell on this for too long—not while we are trying to have a conversation, at least."

Therein was the reasoning that had eluded Blake. Perhaps she had been spending so much time with Yang that her manner in which she interacted with others had altered without her conscious knowledge. She had been interpreting this conversation with Weiss, the self-described pragmatist, as though she would with Yang or Ruby—thinking in terms of emotions where logic and practicality would have been more appropriate. "Now, about this new information that you so quietly want." Though the means were direct and considerably inelegant, Weiss' transition from subject to subject was unarguably efficient and Blake would accept it quickly after her realization. "Yes, Ruby and I are dating, I believe, as of two days ago. It seems as though it happened to coincide with your partner's birthday, so it was a happy day for us all, I am sure." These final words were given without much enthusiasm or care, giving them a mocking edge that presumably came from the mention of Yang.

She continued. "It was a decision made that was due in no small part to your assistance at the jewelry store and, for that, I thank you. The leading up to my question, however, was all my doing—or fault, I should say. I imagine that you had difficulty in confessing your motives to…your partner, yes?" Dismissing the heiress' unwillingness to mention Yang's name, Blake nodded. "I was not prepared to say the least. I grew up believing that I would be the courted one. I was taught that once an appropriate suitor found his way to me, I would know. Unfortunately, I proved to be the courter instead and I cannot say that I knew what I was doing or if I would do it again. That night, I did not sleep well. The thought of confessing addled my mind, telling me simultaneously to give up and to go through with it. In the end, I proved impatient. Perhaps her answer does not mean much, being that it came at around three o'clock, but I am glad she said yes."

"Time will tell," Blake said, now at ease with this distance from the topic of the argument. They were still a new couple and very much inexperienced with the concept of dating—not that Blake hadn't been before Yang, but she certainly was not as opposed to it as Ruby and Weiss were. Despite their experiences and age difference, they were both still children in the Faunus' eyes because of their actions and general approach to life.

"As it should," Weiss agreed. "I am glad about this—more than I am letting on—but I must stay composed. Precautions need to be taken before I can allow this relationship to go anywhere or even before we can actually go on a date."

"Precautions?"

"Blake, surely you must have read a number of romance novels in your life. You must know what happens when the daughter of a family of influence falls for someone who is not of 'noble' blood. I wish it were only a cliché, but my father is not the accepting type even when it comes to members of his own family. Family is a business to him and if you look at Ruby and were to think of a word, I doubt 'business' would come to mind."

Blake chuckled quietly, loosening the girl in white's expression if only slightly. "I suppose not."

"So, you see my predicament. I would like to date Ruby, but I would not like my family to know just yet and I doubt I'm prepared for Ruby to have knowledge of my affections either. I fear she will rush things."

Now that the conversation had strayed from pressing, tense matters, Blake allowed herself to give a reassuring smile. "Well, I can only speak for Yang, but I believe Ruby will not rush you into anything. If she and her sister are anything alike, I doubt she will move too quickly for you. At times, she may try to introduce you to things, but nothing that you are uncomfortable with. They are very kind people, Weiss, and they care about us. You and I may be distant and cold for our own reasons, but they do not care about that. They care to see us happy."

"That's…reassuring. Thank you." Weiss then gave a small smile that proved that her mood had lifted rather substantially. To some extent, Blake felt prideful in this reaction as she believed that she had been the sole cause of. She felt that her ability to do this was learned from Yang's unintentional teachings. Warm conversation tended to appease those whose minds clung feebly to self-destructive logic.

"It's the least I can do. After all, it was with your help that Yang's birthday turned out the way it did."

"How did that work out, by the way?" She seemed legitimately enthused and interested, as though prior thoughts of her supposed doom had been washed away in the span of a few minutes. "I see that she has begun to wear it rather than her scarf."

Instead of giving her a direct answer as would have been courteous and appropriate, Blake felt the need to ask, "You care about how happy Yang was?" Even if Weiss was able to repress the argument to any extent, Blake believed that surely catharsis had not been reached. This had been the first time in the conversation that she had said Yang's name aloud and because of this, the Faunus was uncertain of Weiss' emotional state.

"Hardly," Weiss did not hesitate to answer. "All I care about concerning that necklace is return on investment."

The heiress would retain her stoic demeanor for a few seconds, but even she could not fend off the amused smirk that broke its way through. To some extent, she had recovered from Yang's onslaught, but to assume that her wounds had completely healed would be false. Death threats, as Blake knew all too well, take a long time to forget. However, there seemed to be some restorative rationalization occurring within the heiress' mind as she was able to find humor in a quip about the blonde. "Then I can assure you that the necklace worked extraordinarily well," Blake said. "Thank you."

"There is no need," Weiss waved off. "A Schnee always pays his—her debts." She shook her head. "I apologize. I so rarely have to say that but have heard it used countless times, so I guess it is a force of habit."

Blake assured, "It's all right. Still, your help means a lot even if you choose not to accept a thank you." She smiled and Weiss smiled back, communicating unstated gratitude and friendship with that single gesture which was followed by comfortable silence.

As Weiss was likely contemplating the topics of discussion they had recently gone over, Blake began to delve back into introspection, but for a cause more suited for self-improvement than self-destruction. Her inability to read Weiss at first was disconcerting. The time spent with Yang could have perhaps caused her to think differently and interpret an interaction in a way antithetical to how she would have earlier in the year and, for that matter, earlier in the summer. This change was worrisome, not to the present Blake who felt at ease with her current situation, but to the Blake of the past who had been led to believe that the only way to better herself was to accept her status as an angry, distrustful Faunus. Now, however, she saw herself as a person alongside her teammates peacefully living in the moment. It was a conflicting thought, this change, but she would always side with whichever direction Yang would take her because regardless of the actions of one moment, there was a history of benevolent, selfless acts that only created love within the heart of the Faunus.

This selflessness was part of Yang's character, composure or not. Whatever she had said to Weiss was not without reason—perhaps without forethought or discretion, but not without reason. Blake could only assume that her threats were to protect Ruby, but she did not think they were to keep Weiss away. Doing so would doubtlessly upset the younger girl and cause a rift in their relationship. As Weiss was two years older than Ruby during a time in all their lives where such petty year differences meant something to them, Yang's thoughts could not be said to be unwarranted. At one glance at the two—the childish girl in red and the difficult heiress—one would naturally think there to be a vast divide that could only breed disdain from one to the other, and while this had been the case at the beginning of the year, they had come to accept each other.

However, Yang must have remembered their introductory months because she continued to treat Weiss as the person she was before. Perhaps this could be considered a grudge, but Blake saw it as caution because there had been no malicious intent behind Yang's warning. Although, she had gone too far if Weiss' reaction was anything to go by, so Blake made it a point to bring up the subject when next she spoke to Yang.

Eventually, this quiet came to a halt when Weiss rose from her seat. Before Blake could give her a questioning look, she said, "I won't take up your day any longer. I am sure that your flight was long and you are tired—as would any of us be, so don't bother denying it. I do enjoy our conversations, but you have matters to deal with and I have mine. So, if you will excuse me."

At this sudden announcement of departure, Weiss turned and began to move towards the hallway leading to their rooms. However, before she could reach the doorframe, Blake called out, "Weiss." The girl in question turned, eyebrow raised. "I will talk to Yang about what she said to you and I will see what I can do about easing her restrictions on your relationship. I cannot promise any sort of freedom for either of you in this regard, but I will try to get Yang to apologize."

"Thank you, Blake." Weiss smiled. "I harbor no hatred for your partner, else I would have avoided dating her sister. An apology would be appreciated, though."

Blake reciprocated the expression. "I'll see what I can do." At this, the heiress nodded, turned, and departed for her room, leaving the Faunus to her own devices. Her own devices, in this case, being realization of how long she had travelled (approximately twelve hours after waking up at five in the morning) and appreciation for this solitude.

Blake could not remember the last time she had been alone like this. Perhaps it was the night of the storm or sometime between her parents calling and her leave for Sierra. Honestly, time seemed to become indistinguishable for her, leaving her wondering but on the whole contented by this quiet. She could take a deep breath and not have anyone look at her inquisitively or ask what was wrong. She had the ability to think and let her internal monologue run rampant, but at the same time, she did not have to, causing her to cherish the introverted freedom of the situation. More importantly, she could lean back into the chair and close her eyes for a few seconds without anyone asking her if she was tired or upset.

Though, it is not to say that she was energetic or enthusiastic at the moment. She was tired and fatigued and restless and simply wanted to take a nap. It was an enticing thought despite the sleep she had found on the flight, but she knew that this was not a possibility right now. Perhaps later, during her promised movie night with Yang, she could rest, but the two suitcases standing by the front door required her present attention. She looked at them for a second, sighed, and closed her eyes again. Movie night, she promised herself. At this, she rose and moved to their bags.

Her only motivating factor in putting away her and Yang's luggage was the thought of the blonde. Solitude was refreshing, but she wished to have her girlfriend back. Until Yang returned, the Faunus would find joy in this silence as she worked to minimalize possible stress from still-packed luggage so that their movie night would be relaxing. After all Yang had been through in these past few days—after all the help she had given Blake—she deserved tonight. Blake sighed happily and wearily as she moved to the cases' respective rooms, thinking of her partner and eventual respite.

* * *

In the dim light of the home theatre room, otherwise dark if not for the glow of the television, Blake and Yang lay in restful silence as they watched the screen before them while remaining close to one another. The film was called _Threat Vector: Danger Close_, a choice of Yang's that would purportedly not be too demanding on their attention but had been absent-mindedly entertaining nonetheless. Their present position left Blake curling back into her girlfriend's front and Yang holding her partner warmly as they languidly stretched out across the couch, keeping their eyes trained on the plot-devoid action. Blake could not say that she cared for the premise of this film more than she cared for the stillness of the moment. There were a number of pressing matters to take care of (she needed to finish putting away her own belongings, reassemble Gambol Shroud, and talk to Yang about the argument), but all she wanted to do at this second was pull the blanket wrapped around them closer and rest for a little while.

Fortunately, they were allowed this solitude because the other partnership had chosen to leave them alone. As far as Blake knew, Ruby and Weiss had made a fire outside and were simply talking beside it. Their topics of discussion did not concern the Faunus and because of this, her curiosity would be suppressed for their privacy. She did believe their relationship would work out even if their time together would primarily consist of them fumbling through their progression. Though, it is not to say that Blake was not fumbling her own relationship. With her prior experience in this regard being solely that of what she had read in the various novels she owned, she still could not say that her actions or reactions to whatever Yang did were ideal, but she was comfortable in this position nevertheless.

Yang's chin had come to rest between the Faunus' unbound ears. Whether or not this was intentional had yet to be determined, but Blake enjoyed the closeness and pressed her back further against her partner's chest as an act of returned affection. In this position, the entire experience was warm and tranquil despite the noise coming from the speakers. This is what Blake had wanted in the movie night—stillness, quiet, closeness; there was not much more she could ask for other than Yang's return to her usual disposition. Currently, the blonde seemed to be enjoying herself, watching the screen excitedly and occasionally quoting lines as they were spoken. Though the laughs that this latter action caused should have indicated that she was in a more positive mood, it was the silence that simmered between that concerned Blake. For the time being, however, they would focus on the film.

The protagonist, whose name escaped the young Faunus due to her distracted state, was tailing a motorcade through the city of Vale. Rather, it is to say that he had been doing this up until the moment one SUV pulled away from the others and sped off down the highway. The protagonist—a renegade government agent whose only obstacle was his dark, dark past that was entirely unique to him—chose to follow, believing that one of the occupants of this particular vehicle was a ranking member of an evil underground organization and just so happened to have possession of said group's plans for toppling the walls that kept civilization from the Grimm. This made him the greatest threat to Vale as well as the protagonist's ultimate adversary. Blake chose to refer to this motorcycle-borne character as the "protagonist" rather than "hero" because he had yet to prove himself as anything other than a self-righteous murderer. His quest was admirable, but his means of completing it were dubious at best.

If Blake was correct in her assumptions, then this attempt at chasing the car and, in effect, antagonist would be a fruitless endeavor, being that this scene was only thirty minutes into the film—still within the confines of the first act. The entire film was clichéd, but perhaps that came with the datedness of it all. The cast was made more of bodybuilders than actors, the vehicles were unnecessarily expensive, and the plot had been rehashed a dozen times over in movies of the subsequent decades. But Yang enjoyed it, and Blake would admit that this was comparatively better than a lot of the other action movies she had seen over the years. Although, it did fail in one regard that a vast majority of other films in this genre had when it came to her specific viewing: many times, the action in films is intended to seem intense or impossible for any person other than the actor, but this effect was not felt by huntress-in-training. Perhaps the explosions were something she was not used to, but she often found herself analyzing situations in the film to find better, more realistic ways of neutralizing whatever threats were in the scenes. It was a habit that unfortunately made many scripts seem boring.

With the movie being unable to completely occupy her attention, Blake's thoughts shifted to the girl holding her. At the moment, Yang seemed content—vastly different from the way she had been this morning and afternoon. In the Faunus' mind, this change in emotion was not at all natural after their departure from Sierra and the eventual argument with Weiss. It is for this reason that she suddenly spoke. "Yang?" The girl in question hummed, seemingly at ease with the idea of talking during this film. "How are you feeling? You had me concerned earlier."

There was a pause for a line of exasperated dialogue that told of the protagonist's inability to catch the SUV in this particular chase sequence. "Better," Yang eventually breathed once the scene had passed. "I guess all that travel and the sappy goodbye stuff really did a number on me, huh?" She laughed. It was apparent that the discomfort of the earlier hours had faded by this point—perhaps she had gotten over what had bothered her from before. "I don't know what came over me. It just kinda hurt leaving. I like your parents, Blake, even if your mom is a stick in the mud." This allowed Blake to smirk, easing the uncertainty of Yang's seemingly rapid recovery. "But I didn't think I'd like them as much as I did. It was nice to have some stability for once in my life. You've seen the way my family is, never around but always involved in my life—well, except Ruby, but I'm not complaining about that. It's just…it was a nice change of pace, you know? I got used to it by the end and I guess I forgot how much I hate travelling."

To Blake, this would have been an acceptable answer as it told why Yang had acted the way she had in a manner that was both honest and slightly amusing. However, because she had come to the conclusion that this was her partner's completed answer and because she was facing away from the blonde, she could not see the smirk on Yang's face lower into an introspective frown and eventual heavy sigh. At this sound, the Faunus immediately knew that something was still wrong. "I'm sorry, Blake. I wasn't being completely honest with you." This surprised Blake. She had expected the answer to be that which was already told—both earlier in the limousine and moments ago—but now it seemed as though a more pressing matter lingered within her partner's mind.

"You remember yesterday when I lost my cool in front of your parents?" Blake nodded. "Remember when I went off on your mom over my name?" Again, Blake nodded. "Well, you know that when emotions get the better of me, I tend to say things I regret. Family's important, no matter who they are or how long they've been in my life or even how much time they've put into my life. Family is family, no matter what.

"I'm supposed to be responsible and everything, but every once in a while the responsibilities are just too much and I can't take it. When I said that stuff about my family yesterday—all that stuff about being the only one to take care of Ruby and how my dad doesn't pay attention to us—I didn't mean that." She winced. "I mean, I did but I didn't. I take responsibility for Ruby and will defend her 'til the day I die, but sometimes it's hard to defend her alone. Same thing goes for my dad; I hate that he's never around, but I understand why. Maybe if he could have been less of a teacher and more of a dad, then," this sentence trailed off. "I'm sorry, Blake. Sorry for putting this on your shoulders too."

Blake smiled as she leaned back into Yang's hold. "It's all right," she assured. "I've said a few things in my life that I regret as well, so I cannot fault you. I cannot say that I completely understand your situation and I doubt I ever will, but I'll be with you if you ever need help."

"Thanks, Blake, but I think I'm fine for now. Though, don't be surprised if I take you up on that offer sometime." Yang quietly chuckled as she kissed one of the Faunus' ears, sending a contented tingle throughout its owner. "You're the best friend I could have asked for. I love you."

"I love you, too," Blake whispered as she curled into the hug and appreciated the warmth that had almost entirely returned to the figure behind her. Yang would still need time to fully recover, but this was progress in Blake's mind if the tightening of the arms around her waist was anything to judge by. Without another word, the two turned their attention once more to the film as they simply enjoyed the calm happiness that did not require travel, action, or even thought.

The scene now taking place saw the protagonist being reprimanded by some vaguely ranked member of his agency's chain of command (it is to say that this man was ranked higher than the protagonist, but the degree of difference could not be ascertained). This particular reprimanding was due in large to the protagonist disobeying "a direct order" by following the stray SUV rather than the rest of the motorcade which, in a surprising turn of events, contained the antagonist after all. The protagonist's failure only seemed to characterize him as a "loose cannon" and—something that sounded as though it could have come from Weiss—a "hazard to the agency", but he was also "too good at what he did to report to the director." Blake could not help but laugh a little at the ridiculous script. It was definitely bad, but not repulsive and as such, she could laugh, allowing Yang to smile down upon her.

As the film progressed, so too did Blake's fatigue. The story was entertaining, but monotonous and predictable and it, coupled with the pleasant warmth of blanket and company, caused the Faunus' eyes to gradually droop. It had been a long day full of uncertain emotion and high tensions, but she was glad that the situation had finally cooled. Hostility of some sort would always exist between Yang and Weiss, but this was to be expected as it came with their personalities. Threats, however, were a more pressing issue that kept the young Faunus from the nap that she desired a few hours ago. It is to say that she had attempted to fall asleep at this present juncture, but was unable to because of insistent thoughts of her teammates' safety.

She still needed to convince Yang to apologize to Weiss. How she planned on doing this was yet to be determined as the blonde seemed more interested in the film than reparations, but the matter was pressing and would need to be brought up regardless of any desire for inactivity. Blake remembered the scarlet glare that had been turned on her and how it had burned. Yang's anger could be uncontrollable—Blake had proof on her fingers—and that uncontrollable nature had the possibility of jeopardizing the team in the future. Blake could foresee a time when such tensions might arise from trivialities and she was fearful because of it. As Yang smiled at the screen, Blake frowned, attempting to strategize how to go about bringing up the subject of apology.

With no small amount of trepidation, she eventually asked, "Yang?" The girl in question hummed, apparently enthusiastic about the opportunity for conversation yet unwitting of the unfortunate subject. As Blake continued, she knew that their evening would likely be ruined by negativity and disagreement, but she felt this conversation necessary for the integrity of the team. "We need to talk about Weiss."

Yang sighed. "You mean we need to talk about her dating my sister, right?" She sounded hopeful that this was the case, predictably unenthusiastic about any other potential subject that could have spawned from the argument.

"No, we need to talk about Weiss," Blake repeated, causing another sigh from her partner. "Whatever you said scared her and not in any way that she will recover from quickly. She said that you threatened her life." A grumble of disinterest was heard. "I doubt whatever disagreement you may have had could warrant such a reaction. I understand that you care about your sister—"

"No, you don't," snapped Yang suddenly. It took a moment, but she eventually recomposed herself with a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Blake, the subject's still a little sore."

"It's all right," Blake said. "I'm not trying to accuse you of anything. I just want to make sure that everything is okay."

It took a moment, but eventually Yang relented. "Ruby's all I have left and I don't want to lose her, Blake." The way this conversation had turned was both fortunate and unfortunate for the Faunus. It was fortunate in that Yang was not angry—either at her partner or the heiress—but it was unfortunate that this conversation had taken a more somber route than Blake had expected. However, she would not voice her observations on this matter because Yang seemed as though she was willing to speak of her side of the argument. "You know how Weiss was angry at Ruby for being our leader at the beginning of the year? I know she's not like that anymore, but I can't stop thinking as though she still is. Every time she yells at Ruby, I think she's trying to put my sister down. I know that's not what's going on, but it's what I think.

"I know she said something about being 'the best teammate ever' or something like that—Ruby couldn't stop talking about it—but she's a Schnee. They aren't exactly the friendliest people around and, from what I've heard, they'll do whatever it takes to get what they want. I want to like Weiss, but that last name of hers has me worried. I know it's probably nothing, but I can't be too careful when it comes to Ruby's safety.

"That being said, I can't just forbid Ruby from dating. As much as I don't like the idea of an eighteen-year-old anybody dating my sixteen-year-old sister, Ruby likes her—and I mean _really_ likes her. It wouldn't be fair saying no while flirting with you in front of them, would it? I may be a lot of things, but a hypocrite is not one of them. I hate to admit it, but Ruby's going to have to learn about this kind of stuff sooner or later and I'd rather have a stuck-up prude like Weiss guiding her through the process than somebody else. Still, she's got her last name and that chip on her shoulder for whatever reason, so I can't back too far away." She paused, assumingly composing her thoughts and whatever else she had to say, but she instead finished her explanation by simply saying, "I don't know. I just needed to make sure that she'd stay in line and keep my sister safe."

"She really does mean a lot to you, doesn't she?" Blake could not help but smirk mirthfully at the assumed reason for her partner's anger being protectionism. In a way, it was sweet and comforting that she might be the one defended one day. She could take care of herself, but company was appreciated.

"As I said, family is family. There's not much family left for me, so she's all I've got."

It was from this statement that the Faunus came to a sudden, sobering realization. The assurance of familial importance was not in question, but what came after it. Blake's smirk faded once she heard the desperation in phrasing Yang had used when talking about her sister's place in her life. This sentiment went beyond simple protectionism and into a realm that, up until this point, Blake could not have predicted to exist. She had an idea, but needed more evidence to back it up. For this, she suddenly asked, "Yang, it's not about Weiss, is it? You were angry at her because of Ruby."

"What? No!" There is a definitive line that divides confused outrage from knowing incredulity and in this particular instance, Yang's reaction was on the side that told Blake that she was nearing her idea's validity.

As a means of conveying her respect and care for this conversation, Blake rolled in the hug and turned so that she could face Yang directly, her concerned amber watching nervous lilac. This nervousness did not seem to come from the appraising eye contact, but instead something instilled within Yang's mind. As Blake watched her partner for any change in expression, she thought back to the two times that Ruby had remarked upon Yang's past relationships. The first time, in a discussion two weeks ago that was likely similar in a way to the one Yang recently had with Weiss, Ruby mentioned a few bad relationships. The second instance, occurring today, had Ruby referencing an indeterminate yet presumably large number of relationships Yang had held that eventually did not work out. These were not the events that entirely formed Yang into the person she was, but they likely would have changed her outlook on life and relationships for the worse. It was for this reason that Blake surmised, "You are afraid that by letting Weiss date Ruby, you are going to lose your sister's favor." As she said this, she realized something far more realistic and unfortunate that could have applied to her partner and thusly corrected, "Or you are afraid that you are simply going to lose your sister." The blonde blinked and Blake knew that she had been correct.

"When you put it like that, I want to say no. But I can't. Ruby means the world to me and if she chose to leave like all the others, I'm not sure what I would do."

Blake's attention piqued at the phrase "like all the others" because she had heard the blonde use this phrase before but without the proper context to understand what exactly it meant. Now, however, Blake knew who "the others" were. Friends, family, past relationships—any person who had ever left the blonde or thrown her aside for personal gain. She had been burned in the past by these "others" and wished never again to be separated from those she held dear. This was, perhaps, the cause of her apparent necessity to maintain physical contact with Blake when in public, the care that she immediately placed on her friends (Weiss included), and the extroverted nature that necessitated conversation and companionship as opposed to silence and solitude.

Perhaps this anxiety caused by separation—or, rather, the possibility of separation—had been the source of the uncontrollable emotions that had hurt Weiss. Family was family and Yang did not see the heiress as a person who held familial ties. She saw the girl in white as a threat to the sanctity of the sisterly relationship that, to her, hung by a thread after the passing of their mother and subsequent indifference that grew within their father. If Blake was to guess, Ruby had been Yang's only lasting relationship with anybody; family had disappeared, friends had abandoned her, and romantic interests had never prospered. The sunny, exuberant youth saw herself as alone in the world except for Ruby and those friends that she still held dear.

This was a grim realization that Blake had stumbled upon, but as Yang continued, it became clear to her how unfortunately correct she had been in her assumptions. "I mean, dad doesn't leave the island. Mom's gone—both of my mothers are gone, actually. Qrow rarely ever comes around here. So, Ruby's all I've got—and you, but she's all that's left of my family life.

"I've been taking care of her for, like, ten years now—more if you count the stuff I did to help my mom—so it'd probably be a little rough if she was swept away by some girl she just met." The temperature of the room was slowly cooling with the fading of Yang's warmth. Her breaths were becoming quicker and her speech seemed labored by this point. Blake had not predicted that the discussion of the source of Yang's reaction to her sister's relationship would bring about this level of forlornness. "I know she's going to find someone eventually, but not right now—not yet. She's still a kid and I have a few more years of her being that way before I can even think about letting her get taken away from me. Call it selfish if you want, but she's my sister. The moment that she forgets that is the day I break down and I saw Weiss speeding that process up. I know she's not—at least, it makes sense to me, but I'm not sure if I'm ready to accept that she and my sister are dating. It's just…"

She never had the chance to finish because her partner reciprocated the hug she had been wrapped in. "It's all right," Blake soothed. "It's all right." Blake rubbed the blonde's back, calming her breathing and conveying silent reassurances. It hurt to see Yang like this and somehow the pain that she had been observed in the limousine became even more distressing in retrospect. This sympathy caused Blake to form two promises to herself regarding the wellbeing of her partner: she would keep Yang from this sort of pain in the future and she would never let the blonde feel as though she was alone in the world again.

It took a couple minutes of the aforementioned action and chant, but eventually Yang quieted. "Ruby does not strike me as the type of person who would forget about her sister," Blake said. "If I were to guess, I'd say that she learned to value her family and I would not put it past her to have learned it from you." At that moment, Yang let out what could only be described as a whimper of gratitude, being that she was not able to speak yet but was thankful nonetheless. "Even if she and Weiss succeed as a couple, I do not believe that she would abandon you as easily as you believe. I've told you before how she searched for you during initiation, correct? If she is on her own, she will come looking for you. As she is the only family you have, you are the only family that she has."

"I'm sorry," Yang whispered.

Blake shook her head. "You have no reason to be sorry to me. I will always be here for you no matter what happens and so will Ruby. The only person you need apologize to is Weiss. You pushed her away when she was willing to speak civilly about the relationship." Yang sighed, forcing Blake to continue. "She wants to make amends with you. I know this from what she has said to me. At the moment, however, she is a little hesitant to speak after you threatened her. If you give her time and then apologize, I am certain that she will come to accept you as a friend, too."

Yang let out a long hum that was somehow both contented and remorseful. "Thanks, Blake. I'll…try to do that. It probably wouldn't be best if she has a grudge against me while she's dating Ruby, huh?" Whatever humor had laced her latter few words fell away with another heavy sigh. "Thanks, Blake."

The young Faunus smiled. "It's all right," Blake assured as she pulled herself closer to the warming form. "No matter what happens, I will stay with you if you stay with me. That way, neither of us will be alone. How does that sound?" An enthusiastic nod from Yang was all the answer Blake needed before she nuzzled into her partner's shoulder.

The blonde tightened her hold on the Faunus and exuded the warmth that had last come from her early this morning. She was recovering and they were home. Though the situation was not as stable as Blake desired, it eventually would be once everything settled down. The movie continued to play but neither partner cared much for what was happening on screen as much as they cared for each other. Yang was warming gradually and the Faunus knew that if not by tomorrow, the blonde would return to her usual, positive self the day after. Even then, this longer prediction was generous because the speed at which the aura's warmth returned was incredibly fortunate. Blake would hold herself close to this warmth as she and her partner fell asleep to the sounds of the loud film. It could not bother them because these past few days had been entirely draining on the two and all they wished for now was rest.

Not only had it been a tiresome few days, it had been an exhausting few weeks. Not once did there seem to be reprieve from stress, obligations, or fun that was both delightful and taxing. Now, however, they had such an opportunity and would have a period of relative stagnancy that would last a little over a month. It is to say that this subsequent month was relatively stagnant because with such an eclectic bunch, there were seldom any opportunities for complete stillness. However, the next month would have few instances of noteworthy value to this tale. Of course, apologies would be made, friendships mended, and dates went on, but to avoid redundancy, there is a time better suited for this tale's continuance. It is a time of laughter, reminiscence, and pain that, when compared to these past few weeks, should fit in rather appropriately. Yet until that time could arrive, Team RWBY, still being teenagers and students of the Academy, would relax their summer break away.

* * *

Just in case I was not express enough in my phrasing of the last paragraph, there will be a one-month gap between the events of this chapter and the next. I apologize if anyone is disappointed by this fact, but this is the way the story must progress. If the story continued this day-by-day pacing for the rest of the novel, it would become monotonous and the story would end up being about forty chapters and a million words long, neither of which is my intent. This month serves to separate these weeks from the rest of the summer break so that they may be solidified in their importance to Blake and Yang's relationship. I should remind that interludes of two days and, subsequently, a week have occurred within this story, so a month is a logical, if initially uncomfortable, progression.

On the topic of possibly uncomfortable revelations, I should remark on Yang having some degree of separation anxiety. This has been a characterization I've been writing since chapter one, so it cannot be said to be a spur-of-the-moment decision. Among other smaller instances, this can be seen in Blake having to be the one to initiate the relationship (rather than the extroverted, outgoing, social blonde), Yang's sadness in leaving Sierra (along with her quote in chapter ten of, "I'm terrible with parents."), and her reaction to learning of Weiss dating Ruby. To anyone who may be worried that this is going to alter the direction that _Valence_ is taking, I promise that it is not. It will influence the decisions Yang makes as characters' histories and motives tend to do, but it will not control the story in any halting or overbearing way. It is simply a characterization that serves to deepen the understanding of her character and contrast Blake's social anxiety.

With the more sub-surface details of the story out of the way, I should touch on Ruby and Weiss. I hope the introduction of the fact that they are dating did not come across as too sudden. I can understand if it seems all too convenient for me to write their relationship's beginning when the story's perspective was in a different town. There are many reasons for this (there are a few that have spoilers attached to them, so I cannot say why completely), but their relationship began this way primarily because they are not the focus of this story. Because the narration has been about Blake's perspective (with occasional instances of other nearby characters' perspectives), it would be out of place to suddenly focus on Ruby and Weiss. I hope that the introduction of their relationship went well, but I apologize if it seemed shoehorned or forced. I can assure that within the White Rose short stories (more anon) there will be descriptions of the events referenced in this chapter.

Now, I would like to focus on something in this chapter that will remain a mystery despite my writing on it here. Ruby's gift to Yang will seem as though it is a plot hole for the rest of the story. You may interpret what is inside the crimson wrapping all you want, but to describe it would be to take away its potency when it is revealed. Unfortunately, its unveiling is planned for very, very far in the future. For this, I cannot apologize.

Finally, I should say with a heavy heart that to write the White Rose short stories, I will need to slow the production of _Valence_ even further. At first, I made the decision to complete three of the five short stories before beginning chapter fourteen, but that would be unfair to you. The compromise, I later decided, would be to write one short story and then chapter fourteen followed by the second short story and then chapter fifteen. This pattern will repeat until the short stories are complete. I apologize, but to fulfill the promise that I made, I must allocate time to the short stories. I would expect the first of these to be out in about a month and a half. In the meantime, I am writing another one-off idea like _NVG_ that will be released near the end of this month. Once again, I apologize for this delay and will do my best to work expeditiously without sacrificing quality.

Thank you for reading. I doubt I will ever be able to properly convey my gratitude, but I want you to know that I am thankful for your readership and am incredibly fortunate to be in your favor. I know that this story can be wordy and verbose, so your bearing with me is greatly appreciated. Again, thank you for all that you have done.

Stay safe and stay tuned.


	14. Chapter 14: Bildungsroman

Welcome back! I'm sorry that the wait between this chapter and the last had to be this long. Hopefully the delay was not too discouraging and hopefully this chapter makes up for it.

Before this chapter begins, I should warn that unlike the previous chapters in this novel, there are no line breaks in this instalment. I apologize if this proves to be an inconvenience, but it was necessary for the narrative's sake.

With this said, I shall depart and leave you with chapter fourteen.

* * *

Chapter 14: Bildungsroman

"Blake! Stay down!"

Amidst perilous darkness and the acrid stench of smoke and sulfur, Yang's bark came coupled with a hand that kept the young Faunus beneath the low cover they both crouched behind. Despite her best efforts, Blake was unable to peer over this barricade to see her targets, but she supposed this was for the best. After all, the opposition had proven that they were not pushovers and were skilled enough to exploit even the slightest misstep—such was the fate of the quarrelling warriors previously beside her. But while Yang's protectiveness had kept Blake relatively safe from incoming fire, it left the Faunus with hardly any opportunities to shoot back and protect her partner in kind. Yang had been hit more than a few times by this point, but she seemed fortunately unfazed, grinning widely and excitedly all the while as she often did when faced with tumult and impossibility. The blonde focused her smile on Blake momentarily before standing from cover and returning fire. Two shots later, she returned to the barricade with a satisfied, if weary sigh.

"Yeah, they're bunkered down good. I'm not hitting anything." Blindly enthused howls echoed across this otherwise blackened battlefield, but only with the Faunus' inherent traits would these canon-fodder warriors be seen rushing through the building's wreckage. None were scared and instead raced towards the front with zeal. They were fools with this strategy, but they likely knew this already. This battle was not about casualties or ramifications to them, but instead victory, and in this regard, their zeal was to be commended. However, those who had trained for this scenario knew better than to rush the cover opposite themselves. At least, this is what the Faunus thought before her partner spoke. "Okay, so I think I've got an idea on how to flush 'em out."

Blake rolled her eyes.

"Hey!" Yang exclaimed indignantly. "This one's going to work, I promise."

"Oh, don't get me wrong, I'm sure it will." Before Yang could respond, Blake continued. "Just like all of the other plans that you promised would work."

One challenging smirk met another as a playful glare was shared between the two girlfriends on this battlefield. "O ye of little faith."

Blake raised an eyebrow. "You I have faith in. Your statistics, not as much."

As the shouts and hollers grew in intensity and the need for progression mounted, Blake could not think of anything more than her partner's knowing smirk. This expression communicated the blonde's awareness that Blake was interested in the plan but was hiding behind a purposefully difficult shroud of indifference. After months of teasing and facetious remarks at Blake's expense, it was only natural that some revenge might be taken. However, even the supposedly uninterested silence could not bring Yang's smile down. Eventually, Blake conceded. "All right, what did you have in mind?"

"I knew you'd come around!" At this, Yang's grin widened brilliantly and Blake could not help but smile as well. "But I can't exactly tell you from this far away. The enemy might hear us!" That was a shallow request if ever there was one. Though the two were only a couple of feet apart from one another, Yang's invitation for Blake to move closer during this time of conflict was nothing short of unnecessary. Regardless of this fact, Blake willingly closed the gap so that her girlfriend could whisper in one of her human ears.

The plan was definitively Yang in construction. It was reckless, impulsive, self-sacrificing, and all the while self-aware. The longer she spoke of her stratagem, the more unrealistic it seemed, but never once did Blake doubt the blonde. If anyone could pull off what she had in mind, it would be her, and she seemed excited about the prospect of at least attempting it. While Blake did think to dissuade her partner and save her from the probable repercussions, the sheer conviction in the whispers told of how entirely necessary this stratagem was—not only for victory's sake, but for Yang's. When the blonde whispered the question of if Blake agreed to the plan or not, the Faunus hesitantly nodded. With this came Yang's gratitude in the form of a sudden kiss on Blake's cheek as she pulled away.

The Faunus shook her head in accepting disbelief. "So," Yang began again with the same grin as before, "you ready for this, kitten?"

With a heavy sigh, the girl in reference responded, "As I'll ever be." She then proceeded to unfurl the ribbon wrapped around her forearm and attached it to her gun. It was not that she disagreed with her partner's plan—in actuality, it seemed feasible enough when compared to their other failed efforts—but she worried for Yang. That she would risk her life for a relatively small victory was doubtlessly brave—foolhardy, no doubt, but brave nevertheless. But it was this bravery that Blake did not want to live without. For this, she suddenly said, "Wait. Yang?"

The girl in question had begun to prepare for her actions, but upon hearing her girlfriend's call, she leaned against the barricade once more. "Yeah? Is something wrong?"

Blake gave a brief forewarning smile before she grabbed her partner's collar and pulled her in for a kiss. Yang was not at all shocked by this, and instead grinned into the ephemeral contact and would maintain this expression—albeit in a more toothy fashion—after they pulled away. "Be safe," Blake pleaded. "I don't want to see you get hurt doing something this reckless."

"Oh, you know me." She seemed to be using this as an excuse—as though her regular personality somehow mitigated the potential consequences of her intended action.

"That's why I'm telling you this." Blake frowned. "You are liable to get ahead of yourself and be hurt in the process. It has happened in your other plans and I'm worried about what this one will cause. Please take care of yourself and come back to me in one piece."

This elicited a flippant chuckle from the blonde. "Blake, I'm pretty sure you're overthinking this. The only reason why I messed up the last few times was because I couldn't see where I was going. Not all of us have night vision, you know?" She was met with an even stare that begged her acceptance of the plea. "Okay, fine," Yang resigned. "If you care that much about it, I'll go easy on 'em. Well, I'll do my best, anyways."

Blake smiled warmly. "You always do."

"Blake!" Under the dim light of this cityscape battlefield, a blush flourished on the cheeks of the perennially confident blonde. It was apparent that such a direct statement of affection and trust was still yet unfamiliar to the girl who complimented freely and regularly. And despite Blake knowing that this would happen, teasing had not been her intent. "We're trying to fight a war here! There's no time for stuff like that." To this, Blake raised an eyebrow, challenging the regularly flirtatious girl. "We can do that after we win. Just…get set."

She was flustered—an expression that was not usual for her personality, but one that Blake found amusing in a sort of self-satisfactory way. The Faunus nodded and her partner detached from cover, lowering herself into the shadowy embankment behind it and moving into a sprinter's crouch. She took a calming breath to recover from her partner's words before looking to Blake. Once more the Faunus nodded.

The two simultaneously counted down from three, mouthing the numbers and watching each other for any signs of trepidation, and when this count reached its end, the two quite literally sprang into action.

Blake moved from her position to fire at the figures across the divide. However, these shots were not intended to hit her targets as much as they were to keep them from firing back. Suppression was phase one of Yang's plan and would be followed by the blonde's vaulting over the barricade they had used for cover. Yang did just that, pushing off from her position and bolting into the scathed wastes with no sense of fear or hesitation of any kind. Blake continued to shoot, ensuring that her partner would stay safe if it meant standing in the enemy's line of fire. Yang had already taken a few hits and was still running strong, but not even she could withstand the full force of the enemy combatants. For this reason, Blake would gladly and attentively return the protective sentiments that Yang had provided by way of covering fire.

Though the distance between Blake and her enemies was a mere thirty meters or thereabouts, Yang's unending enthusiasm was communicated through her stride which made even those clamoring zealots beside her seem pitifully incompetent. Neither barrier nor rubble could deter her dashing pace as she hurdled the former and climbed the latter, all while alternating her direction, further confusing the opposition. She quickly overtook the front line, reached the opposite embankment, and leaped far over it before she gave Blake her signal.

With practiced aim and technique, the Faunus ceased fire and immediately threw her gun forward, using her ribbon as leverage and Yang's faraway hand as her target. It was an unorthodox plan indeed that required Yang's possession of both weapons so to maximize the number of shots on target and to allow for multiple enemies to be engaged at once. Though this action left Blake unarmed for the time being, this was not the cause of the Faunus' concern. Her concern rested only in Yang's safety, but at the same time, she trusted her partner and knew that if anyone could pull this feat off, it was Yang.

The blonde caught the gun mid-leap, and upon landing, fired twice to either side of herself. There were no resulting movements around her and no shots were fired in her direction in the following seconds—Yang's goal had been completed and she was safe. For this, Blake allowed herself a smile.

However, she knew the battle was not yet over and now her objective was to rearm herself—that is, Blake had known this fact and had prepared for this objective up until the moment the lights turned on.

In an instant, the wreckage of the battlefield was illuminated wholly and completely. All of the running and shouting and stomping settled into understanding silence. All hostilities evaporated into energetic grins and congratulations from both factions and all weapons were disabled. It was at this point that Blake sighed in relief. Their game was now over and she could rest assured that Yang was safe from her own plans.

It had been a game of laser tag they played—a spur-of-the-moment decision by Yang after the team's earlier lunch. Blake knew that the chance to test her aim and see if this past month (rather, month and a few weeks) had atrophied her combat ability should not be squandered, and, in the process, she had enjoyed herself. Though, she was aware that a simple game could not justly define her current skill, being that Beacon's training regimen was far better suited to make such tests and this locale was more so intended to give the city's populace the feeling of being warriors themselves. However, reacquaintance with combat had not been her intent on this day. Her intent was across the simulated war-torn divide—across the path of wooden representations of buildings and uneven, pitted flooring that, when subjected to the darkness, would seem to most as a post-apocalyptic rendition of some indeterminate city. Across this divide that Blake so easily maneuvered was her intent for the day, grinning triumphantly at the fruits of her plan.

"Ruby, stand up!" Weiss chided. "You are making a fool of yourself." As Blake found her way to the opposite cover, she saw that the heiress did not hold any hostile expression for the young girl. Perhaps her expression could be defined as indignant to a lighter degree, but hostile she was definitely not.

"Weiss!" Ruby croaked from her supposedly injured position. "She got me. She got me, Weiss! My own sister, a traitor!"

"It had to be done, Ruby," Yang said. "Orders are orders."

"Weiss!" Ruby croaked again, eliciting an eye-roll from her partner. "Y-you've gotta leave me behind. There's no other way!" Blake moved to stand beside her girlfriend and retrieve her weapon as they both exchanged congratulatory smiles. Weiss simply raised an eyebrow at her own. "I'll be okay—everything's going to be okay, Weiss. Just…" She faked a cough. "There's something I need to tell you before you go." At this, the girl in white turned away and crossed her arms. "Weiss, I always liked you the most."

Yang responded with a playfully hurt "Hey!" but was met with a nudge from Blake and a look that communicated that this exchange was meant to be had only by Weiss and Ruby. Unfortunately, any sort of returned affection would be uncharacteristic to the heiress who disinterestedly responded, "I know you did. Now hurry up and die. We have places to be and if you do not get off of that floor, we will likely not make it in time."

"Fine," Ruby happily resigned. "Can I at least get a hand here?"

Though the young girl's hand had been intended for Weiss, it was Yang who hoisted Ruby up in one quick pull. Regardless of this fact, the girl in red gave a grateful smile to her sister before moving to stand by the frigid heiress and focusing this grin on her. Despite the previous display of disinterest, Weiss responded with a slight smile of her own.

In this past month, the younger partnership had grown closer—rather, they had grown more comfortable around each other. Stating that they had become closer would be unfortunately inaccurate in this particular instance. Such a statement would imply that Ruby and Weiss had progressed to a point in their relationship where affection was readily exchanged in front of others and assistance like what was recently asked of the heiress would be instinctually given. Instead, the two were simply comfortable with being in each other's presence and had no qualms with blatant kindness—at least, this was Weiss' perspective of the situation. Ruby had been kind and affectionate even before the two began dating and would tell someone such as her sister or Blake that she truly had grown closer to Weiss.

As the four gathered to discuss what they thought of the game, they were interrupted by a tinny voice over the room's PA system. "Players, be advised," the synthesized voice said. "Scores and standings are compiled and will be displayed on the holoscreen at the center of the playing field." At this, the lights once again dimmed and all occupants of the simulated battlefield looked to its center in search of the referenced screen. In a matter of seconds, a small light spun rapidly among the ceiling's supports and from it came a four-sided screen that cast a teal glow over all the excited faces.

By this point, it should be understood that the four members of Team RWBY are proficient warriors, both as a team and as individuals. However, their training lies in practical, real-world conventions of combat and strategy. The game of laser tag does not equate itself to actual warfare and necessitates a separate outlook to the methods of engagement and the drive for self-preservation. Though, it is not to say that the four were ineffective in this setting. In actuality, these four huntresses proved the most capable and skilled out of the thirty other patrons, but because they were the most skilled and because they were all prone to accepting challenges, they had focused their combat efforts against only each other as an unstated means of proving which partnership was more capable. Unfortunately, this focus led to their standings being at the bottom of their respective teams' lists.

Ruby had proven the most competent with her "kill" count being in the double digits—most of which were attributed to Yang's disregard for cover, but more than a few shots had connected with Blake. The Faunus, unsurprisingly, came in at second behind her opposing teammate, trailing her by only a few shots confirmed but beating her in the number of shots taken. Mostly, this latter statistic was ascribed to the protective nature of Yang, whose "death" count rated higher than only the heiress who came in at a distant fourth with no "kills" to her name.

Weiss scoffed. "Of course I came in last place. Whoever thought that using such unwieldy instruments to fight a battle obviously has no regard for the classics." She lifted her gun disdainfully. "Honestly, how could they expect me to hit anyone as far away as you were?"

"Hey, it's not the business' fault that you can't shoot." Yang smirked at the now glowering heiress. "C'mon, Weiss. Just admit that you aren't perfect for once in your life."

"I'm not!" she huffed. "But I am certainly not as bad as my score says I am!"

"Aw, Weiss, I thought you did great!" Ruby grinned reassuringly at her partner.

She received a flat look in response. "You do realize that I failed to hit anything?"

"Yeah, but you distracted Yang and Blake and let me get the kills. Teamwork, Weiss! Teamwork."

The heiress released this conversation with a sigh. In these past few weeks, Blake had observed Weiss' temper cooling and her argumentative tendencies in regard to Ruby slowly dissipating. For some reason, the heiress still seemed disinterested in conversing with her partner whenever such a positive tone came about, but she would not oppose it as she would have previously. There was no doubt that Weiss was warming to the younger girl, and Yang was relatively thrilled about this. The tensions between the blonde and the heiress had still not completely settled, but Yang was beginning to trust Weiss with her sister's protection and Weiss was beginning to see Yang as something other than a ticking time bomb of overprotective wrath.

Unfortunately, these reflective thoughts and their conversation were interrupted by the voice of a vacating patron amongst his own group of friends. "A lot of good that 'teamwork' did, huh?" the boy sneered with no small amount of disappointed malice lacing his tone. "Maybe if you nerds didn't try so hard and actually played the game, we would have won."

As the shadowy group walked away, Ruby turned and glared. "Yeah?" she began defensively and awkwardly. "Why don't _you_ try harder…?" She unintentionally paused and added, "Nerd!"

As that group exited the playing field, laughing all the while, Yang placed a hand on her sister's shoulder. "Nice one, Ruby. You really got him there." Upon hearing this, the young girl's shoulders slumped and her uncharacteristically aggressive expression fell away. "Hey, it's all right," Yang reassured. "They're just mad because they didn't do as well as us. I mean, sure, they scored higher, but where's the fun in that if you can't add a little flair? I thought we did good—well, three of us did. Weiss, you've really gotta work on your aim." The heiress stuck her nose up at this. "But other than Weiss being a terrible shot—and I mean absolutely horrible—I thought this was a good way to get back in the saddle, you know?"

At some point during the teasing aside made at Weiss' expense, Ruby stifled a giggle and managed to recover somewhat from the boy's mean-spirited words. To her credit, Weiss took this comment in stride, seemingly being at ease with Yang's remark if it could brighten Ruby's disposition again. Fortunately enough, this seemed to be the case. "I guess," Ruby accepted. "I mean, we probably need more practice before we head back to Beacon, but I liked it. How about you, Weiss?"

There was a brief moment where the heiress looked to be internally debating her next course of action, but at this pause's end, she admitted, "I thought it was fine." This elicited a cheery smile on her partner's features. "However, we must be going if we hope to make our reservation."

"Oh, Weiss, I'm so excited!" Somehow, Ruby's smile was able to broaden exponentially and her expressed demeanor shifted from generally positive to radiantly jubilant at Weiss' referencing words. "It's your first date ever. It's my first date ever. It's _our_ first date ever! It's gonna be so much fun!" By the end of this rapid exclamation, the young girl's speech had reached such a high pitch that the heiress could not hide an averse shudder.

"Compose yourself," Weiss snapped. "You agreed to my terms that if a date was to occur, you would behave and not draw attention to us like you are now."

"Wait," Yang interjected. "Don't you mean 'outing?' I thought you two didn't go on 'dates.'"

"Don't be absurd. Outings and dates are two entirely different beasts. This is most certainly a date and there is no way around it. What else would you call an occasion where two people are required to dress up and travel to a restaurant they have made reservations to whereupon they will dine alone yet with each other?"

"An outing."

Weiss' unamused glare came to rest upon the blonde as Blake attempted to hold back a chuckle. "We don't have time for this. Ruby, let's go."

The young girl smiled and moved to depart, but both she and her partner were halted by Yang. "Hold it," she said firmly, catching Weiss' gaze with her own and losing her lighthearted expression. "I'm fine with you taking Ruby out on a date. Honestly, I think it's sweet of you to hold off for this long. But—and here's the kicker—while you're taking your pride with you and all your thoughts pointing to this date as being something trivial and not worth your time, you're also taking my baby sister and she's bringing with her my rules." The heiress sighed and relaxed her stance so to heed the blonde's instruction.

"So, first things first: no funny business. That can mean a lot of things that I'm sure you don't intend, but just know that if something seems like it's a bad idea, it's probably off-limits. If something happens to Ruby, I'll know. I can read her like a book—well, like Blake can read a book, but it's the same idea.

"Second thing: like it or not, you're going to show Ruby a good time. She's still new to the dating scene and I'd be shocked if you weren't, but if I hear that she was bored or that you made her cry, there will be a price to pay—one that not even you can pay with all your money and pretty words. She will always be my sister before she is your girlfriend and I have every right to make sure you don't hurt her. You're growing on me, Schnee, but no amount of friendship will save you from a bad first date. You are going to show her a good time, no, a great time, and you aren't going to royally screw up her love life for the future. It's her first date and I want it to be the best one she'll ever go on just so that she'll decide never to date again because she'll know that there's no way she can recreate what you are going to do for her tonight.

"And now the last rule: smile. If I know you, you're going to hate tonight because it's not 'proper' or 'refined' or 'befitting of a Schnee', but you're at least going to look like you like it. And I'm not talking about smiling at Ruby, because that's part of rule two. I'm talking about you smiling at everybody you come in contact with tonight. I want you to look like it's an honor to stand beside my sister as you chat up all the other stuck-up elitists. To those people, you're not Weiss Schnee tonight, you're Ruby Rose's date and nothing more. And you're going to smile about that fact like I smile about my sister every day because it _is_ an honor to stand beside her. And if you think your family's name means anything tonight, you're wrong. The only thing that matters to you is Ruby, not the people there, the press you're going to get, or your name being ruined. You got all that?"

"Yang!" Ruby pleaded, sporting a blush that seemed entirely uncomfortable and embarrassed. "Stop! You don't need to do all this, I'll be fine!"

However, the only one that seemed to hear her was Blake due to Yang and Weiss heatedly staring each other down. The young Faunus saw her leader glare at the blonde, hoping that no rules would inhibit this milestone in her socially awkward life. But Blake's allegiance was to Yang, and she knew that these rules set upon the opposite partnership were intended not to inhibit, but to assist—at least in the case of Ruby.

Eventually, this staring contest would come to a close when Weiss raised a challenging eyebrow. "Get all that? Please; you are giving me rules for which I have already prepared. You speak as though tonight is a hindrance upon my affairs, but I can assure you that you and your simple mind have never been more wrong. I plan on making tonight memorable because not only is it Ruby's first date, it is my own first date, and if Ruby could ever recreate this, then I would applaud her. Tonight is the culmination of this last month's worth of plans. When a Schnee sets her mind to something and has the ability to plan around it, then you have something to the effect of the Schnee Dust Company in its current state.

"I will keep your rules in mind, but I will not give you the satisfaction of knowing that they are in any way holding me back. I know who tonight is about, and that is Ruby. To think otherwise would be selfish and, as you put it, unbefitting. You have my solemn word that your sister will not want to date another soul after tonight, not because of the money or pretty words behind this occasion, but because of the care that I have personally put into it. And, just for you, I will smile the entire time."

Yang gave a low chuckle as she smirked. "You're all right, Schnee. You might be a snob sometimes, but you're all right." This smirk shifted into a smile and so, too, did Weiss' expression. "Be back by eleven or you know what I'll do."

The heiress nodded. "We will return by ten. No sooner, no later."

Yang nodded in kind before moving to her sister and wrapping her in a hug. "You take care of yourself out there, okay?" Ruby nodded into her shoulder and reciprocated the embrace. "I don't want you getting hurt. I know you won't, but please take care of yourself."

"I will," Ruby promised.

At this, the blonde pulled away and smiled proudly at the young girl. This was followed by a hearty pat on the shoulder that caused Ruby's own happy expression to waver for a brief look of pain. However, Yang ignored this and said, "And don't let Weiss get the better of you. You're faster than she is, Ruby. Don't forget what I taught you." She grinned—mischievously if Blake were to remark. "Remember, thumb _outside_ of the fingers, aim before striking, and connect with the knuckle."

"I hardly think that a situation will arise where such conflict would be necessary," Weiss interrupted. "On the off-chance that someone does choose to harm Ruby, however, I will have my sword at the ready."

She was met with a cautious look. "That's exactly why I'm telling her this. I know that Ruby can take care of herself if it was just some random guy on the street, but you already know how she fights. I'm just telling her how she's supposed to defend herself if you don't follow rule number one."

Weiss did not argue against this statement nor did she glare at Yang for such a lack of trust. Over this past month, the friendship between the blonde and the heiress had recovered to an extent, but Yang still did not trust Weiss with Ruby's safety. Every night before she and Blake fell asleep, Yang would always find something new to worry about in her sister's relationship. Usually, these worries came in the form of their age gap, their opposing worldviews, and the disparity in their personality types (which Blake would always soothe through a comparison to their own relationship), but this present conversation was quite a bit different.

Now the blonde faced Weiss directly and shallowly explained to her that Ruby had been taught rudimentary hand-to-hand techniques. Rather than fighting back as would have been characteristic for the shorter girl, Weiss once again nodded. Her countenance seemed disappointed but surprisingly excited as well. She was undoubtedly aware of Yang's distrust, but she seemed to accept it and accommodated the protective sister. Her goal was not self-sacrifice—Blake knew that anything of the sort did not apply to Weiss Schnee—but instead Ruby's happiness. Fortunately, Yang was aware of this as well, leading to her eventual allowance of the date. Of course, Ruby's input certainly helped sway the blonde's opinion.

Before Weiss could respond with another assurance of safety or some other appeasing statement, Ruby moved quickly to her side and brought her into a not-so-gentle hug. "I promise I won't hit you, Weiss! Yang's just trying to scare you is all. We're gonna have fun tonight and it's gonna be the best date ever!"

While the heiress did seem uncomfortable with any form of physical contact and blushed at Ruby's affection, she did not lash out at the young girl. Perhaps this could be attributed to Yang's presence and the probable repercussions of reprimanding her sister, but Blake knew that this was not the cause of her dilemma. She knew that Weiss had grown fonder of her partner and was actively attempting to remove herself from her distaste for physical contact—the heiress had stated in confidence that the only way to properly accept Ruby as her girlfriend was to accept physical affection and even offer some in kind. However, she did seem unenthused still about the idea of letting the world know of their relationship, but that was what tonight was for, if Blake was correct.

"Okay," the girl in white accepted before turning her head to Yang, choosing not to shrug off her partner. "If you have no further commands, then we will be off."

She did not move, proving that she was willing to wait for Yang's permission lest her teammate's protective fury be incited. Yang released her subtly hostile expression for one of a reassuring smile. "No, I think that's it. Just remember my rules and be sure to have fun." Ruby flashed her an elated grin and the heiress nodded for the third time before moving forward with her partner still attached. The young couple exited the battlefield and disappeared into the veil of light separating this darkened room from the brighter outside.

Yang simply stood in place, holding a wistful smile as she watched that distant veil. Blake moved to stand beside her and took hold of her partner's free hand. "We should probably leave, too," Blake said. "I believe the staff here needs to prepare for the next round and we have been keeping them from doing so."

The blonde nodded and the two slowly began to move toward the exit. "Yeah, sorry. This is kind of a lot to take in and I want to savor the moment while I can." She sighed. "She's really growing up, isn't she? First she gets into the school of her dreams, then she gets to lead her own team of huntresses, and now Ruby's with somebody she's head-over-heels for. With her being the age she is, she's got the world at her fingertips and she doesn't even know it yet. Honestly, I don't think she'd care, anyways. I mean, if I was given that kind of responsibility, I would freak out, but Ruby? She seems like she has everything in control and she's not even breaking a sweat. In a lot of ways, she's more grown up than I am."

She squeezed Blake's hand. "How long has it been now? Ten years? I mean, I know it's been sixteen since I first met her, but after mom passed…I don't know. I guess after ten years of taking a role, you sort of become it, right?" The blonde interrupted herself with a short laugh. "It's not like I want Ruby to call me 'mom' or anything—I'm not _that_ messed up—but it really does feel like I'm acting like one. So, to see her walking off with Weiss is…I don't know…weird? On one hand, I want to punch Weiss' face in for even looking at my sister as anything other than a friend, but at the same time, I know that Ruby likes her."

"You're doing the right thing," Blake assured. "It would be wrong to hold her back at a time like this."

"Yeah, I know, but it's all moving too fast."

The young couple stepped out of the battlefield and into the lobby. For the moment, their conversation would be put on hold as they returned their vests and laser guns and rearmed themselves with their own weapons. Evidently, hunters were a common enough occurrence here that their weapons were permitted on the field of play; their usage, however, was forbidden. But this was agreeable and so too were the staff members who, despite having been inconvenienced by the team's conversation, wished the couple a genial good-bye as they stepped out into the summer climate of the city.

They stood upon the populated sidewalk outside the establishment during the waning hours of the afternoon's light. It is to say that they simply stood there because their conversation had yet to continue and this new locale that lacked pressure to vacate allowed the young couple their opportunity. Yang continued. "I mean, you know what it's like, having the world change around you and knowing there's nothing you can do to stop it. That's why you became a huntress, right?"

"That's why we all did." Not minding the passing crowd whatsoever, Blake turned to face her partner and enveloped her in a hug that would hopefully ease some of the tensions. "Yang, I know this is a difficult situation for you, but there are some things in life that simply do not involve us. While your sister's safety and wellbeing falls into the category of what does involve you, who she falls for and how she goes about dating are things you only have so much power over. Eventually, these are battles she's going to have to fight without you. Perhaps she will fight them with Weiss, perhaps with someone else, but at the end of the day, Ruby is her own person and feels as though she must fix everything, too."

"I get that. It's just that seeing Ruby grow up doesn't sit right with me. She's always going to be that thirteen-year-old who just got into Signal and busts down my door in the middle of the night to tell me something new she read about the differences in ballistic trajectory of one bullet's grain and another. You just don't see that sort of enthusiasm anymore in our age group. I lost it, you lost it, Weiss never had it, and Ruby's still going strong." Yang returned the hug with a greater fervor than Blake had originally intended and rested her head against her partner's shoulder. "Blake, I don't care if she grows up, I just don't want her to lose that spark. That's what makes Ruby who she is. And if Weiss takes that away from her—"

"It will be all right, Yang, I promise." Blake leaned her head against her partner's as she rubbed the blonde's back, feeling the quick rise and fall of her frustrated breathing. "If anything, it seems to me like Ruby sees Weiss as a challenge. She knows that Weiss is hard to get along with and has braved her icy demeanor nevertheless. I doubt her enthusiasm will wane, because, as you said, it is part of her character. Hopefully she will continue to chase Weiss' affections and Weiss will continue to give her a challenge. I know that she likes that about Ruby, her spirit. Perhaps it is just my biased opinion, but I believe Weiss will not change your sister and they will do well with each other."

A grumble of discontent shook Yang's form, causing Blake to redouble her efforts. "It will be all right, Yang," she said before cradling her girlfriend's head. She repeated this reassurance once more and the grumble stopped.

"I'm sorry, Blake," the blonde whispered.

"There's nothing to apologize about." She paused to let the words take effect. "Your care is only natural, but at the same time, you have to understand that a mother bird lets her chicks fly the nest at some point or another."

"I-I guess…"

Blake pulled away to meet her partner's troubled gaze. Those lilac orbs that shone once fervently now rested on a space paradoxically immediate and infinite. And in this way, Yang's expression could be said to be worried, saddened, trepid, self-loathing, but most importantly and above all else, afraid. She who had been unendingly positive and strong saw now the means of her emotional demise in that silver-eyed child. She was a mother, a sister, a friend all to the same person, and to be stripped of one title at the girl's maturity was to deprive the blonde of these past sixteen years. But she knew that these three descriptors could not coexist in the way they had for much longer. In that space both immediate and infinite, Yang saw a trifurcation from which she would become only one of the surrogate mother, the protective sister, or the supporting friend. All had their ramifications, but only one consequence did shake the unshakeable girl: Ruby's hypothetical repellence.

This was a sad sight indeed, but one that had lost its edge since that returning night one month ago when the shocking revelation had been admitted and this pain had been revealed. In that time, Blake had found ample opportunity to find a response that would ease her partner back onto the road to recovery. She smiled as warmly as she could, catching Yang's distraught gaze with hopeful eyes. "It's okay. Do you remember what I said about Ruby never leaving you? Yang, you will always be her sister and she will always hold you in high regard. Just as Ruby will never leave you, I will never leave you. And though you might not like it, Weiss will never leave you either. We may not all be a family yet, but that's all right. We're getting there, and you're the keystone of this idea's founding. It's okay, Yang."

The blonde closed her eyes and took a calming breath. "Okay."

A reassuring smirk was given and a gloved hand taken before Blake said "Come on" and pulled the blonde forward. Yang offered some resistance at first, but eventually she was swayed by Blake's distracting efforts and followed.

Though Blake had no concept of sisterhood or what it meant to take care of another for as long as Yang had, she understood loss well. Moreover, she was aware of the pain that time brings through the changes it makes. When her affiliation with the White Fang disintegrated, it had not been an immediate process or a single explosive conflict. Her separation had been the effect of years of uncertainty and unstable ideologies upheld by a fickle leadership who dragged her down a path both unintended and unfortunate. In Blake's mind, Ruby would eventually grow out of her naïveté as was only natural. However, that enthusiastic spark and creative edge that Yang protected would never leave the young girl. It was so ingrained in her personality that to be deprived of it would be to deprive a body of its soul.

It hurt to see Yang in pain and the thought of Ruby losing her innocent enthusiasm was entirely disconcerting. Both were the types to quickly recover from whatever personally ailed them and focus their attention on someone else, but there had to be a limit to this strength. Truthfully, Blake did not ever wish to find this limit and thus leaned against her partner's arm and sighed at her warmth.

In this mid-afternoon hour, when the clear sky burnt orange and the gentle murmurs of conversation spoke of what next the masses would do to conclude their respective nights, the young couple found serenity in each other's company. In fact, Blake had been so relaxed that she chose not to wear her bow and allowed her Faunus traits to flit at the myriad sounds around her. Rather, it is to say that this courage was not exclusive to this day, but had been a mounting decision over the course of this past month. Today would be the second day she would go without the cloth. On that first day, only a handful of occurrences made her wish for the bow, but the sheer amount of tolerance and disinterest shown far outweighed these negative sentiments. Perhaps it was the imposing blonde at her side, but Blake felt as though she was treated as another person—in a way that the White Fang's leadership had preached could never exist in humanity's current state.

In this way, the passing crowds could be claimed harmless, not stressful. Of course, conversation and debate with those around her would more than likely go awry, but she knew that abstaining from interaction would yield restorative results. She was no longer afraid of being in the presence of a large group of people—she was still hesitant and nervous, but not afraid. The mob around her was no longer reminiscent of the one in her memory and the cause of this, she believed, was Yang.

Blake turned and found her partner's rejuvenated smile. No matter how cowardly the Faunus believed she was or how debilitating this sentiment could become, the blonde would always be a shining beacon of warmth and acceptance that warded off all notions of inadequacy. Blake chose not to smile back but instead closed the gap between them and kissed the cheek of her partner. It was a drawn-out action that served more a grateful purpose than those chaste actions of before, and as she felt Yang's skin flush under her touch, she knew that the affection was justly conveyed. Yang continued to blush and hold a grin that was more so goofier than confident while Blake disconnected their hands, nestled her head into her partner's shoulder, and wrapped an arm around her waist before stating, "I love you, Yang. Ruby will be all right, I promise."

Yang's expression faltered for a moment—not out of discomfort but out of uncertainty with how to respond to such flattering attention from an admirer she so revered—before she beamed and placed a comfortable arm around the Faunus. "Thanks, kitten. I needed to hear that. Not that I wasn't listening before, it's just that I needed to hear that when I was thinking straight. I'm probably overthinking this whole dating thing, aren't I?"

The only response she received was that of a contented hum as Blake cuddled closer into her girlfriend's shoulder, minding not the passersby whose expressions likely were of discomfort at seeing such an unbridled show of emotion. Alongside her relative ease amongst a crowd, Blake had truthfully lost any sort of care as to what these people thought of her relationship. If there had been any disagreement, there had yet to be an instance where it was voiced. Because of this trend, Blake decided that fretting over improbabilities was purely self-destructive. Yang seemed to be of a similar mindset.

"Anyways," she digressed, running a hand over Blake's arm and moving further down the walkway, "after we hit the music store, is there anywhere else you want to go?"

Today's itinerary had been eclectic to say the least, but was formed around Yang's insistence that she and Blake would travel to one of the city's music stores after the repeated references to it earlier in their summer break. This single idea had been suspended for the passing of the team's lunch, a brief trip to a clothing store which only Weiss was able to enter (so to retrieve a few ordered items), and this most recent game of laser tag. Unfortunately, while the preceding events to this present journey had been enjoyable and relaxing, what came next was disquieting to the young Faunus.

Memories had always been her greatest weakness. From the unforgiving knowledge of the acts which she had aided to the horrible visions that infrequently plagued her, Blake's past would seemingly always be her focus despite Yang's best efforts. This flaw never did arise from any sort of weak personality or emotional susceptibility—she had become calloused over the years in these two regards—but from her own insistence that once a memory was brought to light, it would be followed through until the sting of remorse could be felt. In this particular instance which was brought about by Yang's question and the impetus of the day, it came to mind that music and the act of playing it were examples of these regretful memories.

Fortunately, Yang's presence dissuaded the Faunus from following these thoughts for the time being. The blonde still required an answer and reminiscence could be put off for a later date. Blake sighed and shook her head against her partner's jacket. "Not particularly. Perhaps later we could sit down and eat somewhere, but it is entirely up to you."

"Well, it's a date then!" Yang paused and her radiant expression dipped into one of self-imposed uncertainty. "You know, I'm not even sure if it is a date by this point." Blake did not move her head, but did raise an eyebrow. "I mean, I'd count it as one, but it's just so…normal now. It's not like I can ask you 'Hey, Blake, do you wanna get dinner?' because the answer's always the same—not that there's anything wrong with that!" She paused again, but this was punctuated with a contemplative "Huh" before she smiled sheepishly at the Faunus. "I guess I'm not used to this kind of relationship. I've…never really gone out with anyone for this long."

For a moment, Blake was confused. It had been about a week shy of two months since their relationship began. Even to the Faunus who had been inexperienced with relationships prior to Yang knew that this short timeframe being perceived as an achievement to the blonde was telling of an unlucky past. Admittedly, this revelation seemed fortunate to some part of Blake, but at the same time, she could not help but feel sorry for whatever dormant stories rested beyond the wall of Yang's hesitance. Because of this latter sentiment, Blake said, "I'm still not entirely used to dating either, but I've enjoyed this routine we've maintained. It feels right."

"I know. I like it, too, and I wouldn't want to do this with anyone else." Blake felt a warm softness kiss the spot between her Faunus traits as Yang held her nearer.

The young couple moved past a number of shops specializing in all of antiques, books, fashion, and technology. Their destination was at the point from which they started this day—where Yang's bike rested and where the blonde's tour had taken place a little over a month ago. Blake could not help but smile at that tour and what it accomplished. While her knowledge of the city had grown only marginally on that day, it contained a moment of epiphany. She remembered that mirrored monument and seeing herself smile in a way the White Fang said she would never be able to. She remembered that internal conflict that now seemed laughable. In a way, she was envious of last month's Blake—the Blake who had yet to experience love and triumph and reunion for the first time—but the girl of the present could not complain with her current situation. Blake quietly chuckled. She never figured herself the nostalgic type, but here she was, reflecting upon past events without shame or fear.

The Faunus moved her head away from her partner's shoulder to see how the blonde was faring. She expected some positive emotion to take precedence over her countenance, but found Yang holding a somber stare. It was a look of intense deliberation not pointed at anyone or anything. She must have felt Blake move because her expression was released with a weary sigh. "Blake," she said, "I know Ruby told you some stuff about my exes. I don't want you worrying about them; they don't mean anything to me anymore. Actually, the people don't but the experiences do, but that's not the point."

She turned to her partner. "Blake, if you don't mind, I'm going to tell you some stuff, and you can stop me anytime you feel uncomfortable, but I want you to know that I love you. None of the people in these stories mean anything—most of them, I forgot their names. Just stop me whenever you want or if it makes you uncomfortable."

It took only a moment for Blake to realize that Yang intended to divulge the stories of her past relationships. The logical part of the Faunus' mind that focused on self-preservation told her to stop the telling of these stories that harmed the indestructible blonde. These were "the others" that Yang had feared mention of. Blake was curious, of course, but Yang's safety was her first priority. "Yang, you shouldn't have to tell me this. If they did not mean anything to you, you may keep them as secrets. It is not my knowledge you should be worried about, but your own safety."

"I know that, but this is part of keeping myself safe. I've had these stories bottled up for years because nobody needs to know them. This is stuff even Ruby hasn't been told, but I think I need to tell you. I'm tired of secrets, Blake. There are still a lot that I need to keep so that you and Ruby can stay safe, but these…these I need to get off my chest." She turned to her partner with an apologetic frown. "Please, kitten, you have the power to stop me at any time, but just let me start first."

There was a pleading tone to the blonde's words. This was no simple desire to let these secrets out but a necessity. Part of the reason why Blake did not want Yang to say what was on her mind was due to the similarities these memories had to those of the White Fang. Both had lingering effects and required a certain amount of withdrawnness in order to keep those they held dear safe from the past. But this was a brave action that Blake had to respect because this bravery was to her partner as childlike enthusiasm was to Ruby. If the Faunus was to ignore her previous conversation about her leader's changing character, then she would prove herself hypocritical. "Okay," she resigned, "just don't get ahead of yourself. And know that I will be right beside you if you need assistance."

Yang gave a grateful smile. "Thanks, Blake. I'll do my best." She then looked to the path before them. The route was doubtlessly cemented in her mind and she would remain aware of her surroundings as her tales were told. If Blake were to guess, Yang was calculating how long the stories should last if she wished to finish a comfortable distance before their destination. For the length of this ensuing discussion, it should be stated that the couple would make their way back to Bumblebee and the music store it was parked near, turning corners and strolling together down other walkways in the process.

"All right," Yang said. "Just to make sure no bad blood comes out of this, I'm going to try not to mention anyone by name. You're the only one that matters to me, Blake, and I'm not just saying that. I really am thankful that you've tolerated me for as long as you have. I just want you to know before I start that you mean the world to me, and no matter what I say about any of these guys, all of it's in the past."

Such a statement alluded to some sort of connection that could make one jealous. However, the stories needed to be told, causing Blake to nod, giving the consent and reassurance Yang desired to begin her tale.

Yang took a deep breath and turned her attention forward. She began. "When I was eight, I had my first kiss. We were just kids in elementary school and it didn't mean anything, but he was still my first. I was still at that age where I could say boys were gross and every other girl around me would agree, but for some reason, he asked me if I wanted to be his girlfriend and I said yes. I guess it was a sort of popularity thing back then. I mean, what eight-year-old has a boyfriend? We stood out for the three days we were 'together.' But on the third day, he kissed me and I kissed him. There was no lead-up to it or anything, he just said, 'I want to kiss you' and I let him. Right after, he dumped me, saying that he didn't like kissing me and girlfriends were dumb."

She shook her head. "I shouldn't remember that because I was young and there was a lot of other stuff going on at the time, but that guy just sticks out in my memory. Like, whenever I tried to chase after anyone or anyone tried to chase after me, I'd remember him and how he only wanted me for the popularity and to test his curiosity. That relationship was never about me. It was always about him. I spent those three days doting over some boy when I could have been spending time with Ruby and my mom. I wouldn't say he's my greatest mistake, but in terms of personal angst, that guy's pretty far up there on the list."

"I assume his judgment hurt your feelings?" Blake asked.

"Are you kidding me? He was technically my first boyfriend and I was only a kid at the time. After that whole thing, mom took Ruby and me to the park and that area way back there and I just cried my eyes out. I wasn't strong then. I never punched him like I should have and I couldn't keep myself from crying."

A small smile broke through the sunny girl's expression. "But mom was strong. She didn't just say everything was going to be all right, she proved it to me. She told me that the boy was just a kid and that one day I'd find somebody I could actually love and would love me back. She said that there would be a lot of pain on that road but that it was good I got him out of the way. If I could get over rejection and hurt feelings early on, she said I'd grow into a stronger girl. I'd like to think I've gotten stronger, but she never got the chance to finish her explanation before she left." At this, her smile faded.

When Ruby ambiguously described the sort of harmful relationships her sister had suffered, she had made it seem as though they were immediately damaging—situations that would make the blonde hold lifelong grudges against the perpetrators. Now it was clear that these relationships were more long-lasting and formative of her current style of affection. Selfish thoughts aside, hearing these tales spurred a sensation within the Faunus that was torn between a fiery hatred of those who had wronged Yang and a protective yearning to reach out and hold the blonde until she was whole again. But she would wait. Yang seemed convinced that her stories' telling was necessary.

"I didn't date anyone for a long while. After mom passed, I didn't have the courage to trust anyone, let alone with any sort of relationship. It all just sort of seemed pointless to me. When I was eleven, I went through this outcast phase where I wouldn't let anyone get close and those I could call friends were met with a really dark sense of humor. Looking back, it seems like I was in the wrong, but at the time, it was like a constant war I was fighting and the enemy was everyone else. It was weird back then. I've always liked meeting new people and making friends, but back then I just…didn't.

"I wanted to be alone and it seemed like everyone knew it, except one guy. It was lunchtime and I was alone at the end of one of the tables with my head down—as per usual—when I heard someone sit across from me. I knew him before then; we'd talked a few times and he seemed nice enough. What I didn't expect was for him to be as nice as he was. He didn't come to hit on me or anything like that, he said he just wanted to talk and know what was bothering me. I lied to him, of course, and said something about a pet dying and he just sat there and smiled. One thing led to another and he bought me lunch so that we could talk. Honestly, he was a really nice guy, all things considered.

"Lunch ended and because of that, we had to go our separate ways, but somehow he managed to find me at the end of the day when I was walking home with Ruby. He came running up with the biggest blush I've ever seen and spat out a question. He asked me to a dance the school was holding for kids of our age group. I told him no at first because I still had a bad taste in my mouth after the last guy, but Ruby didn't shut up about him all night. She kept telling me to go to the ball and be with Prince Charming. Now that I think about it, it's kinda funny, but Ruby was right. I didn't need to stay cooped up in the house all the time; my place was out making friends and having fun. So, I told him at lunch the next day that we would go to the dance together."

She gave a short chuckle, showing that what was to be said next was not as damaging as the previous story. "Honestly, this guy might be the best of the bunch. Don't get me wrong, this does end badly, but he was sweet. The night of the dance came around and all my friends from before that moody phase didn't even recognize me. It felt right being at that dance—not necessarily with the guy, but at the dance. The moment I stepped through the doors, I was smiling, talking with people, and even flirting with the guy—well, 'flirting' for eleven-year-olds. We talked, we laughed, we danced—although, at that age, 'dancing' really meant jumping around to two or three songs before attempting one slow dance. That last one never worked, by the way."

"It sounded like you two had fun." Blake smiled despite the pang of jealousy that chewed away at her. The action was innocuous enough because of her partner's age at the time, but it still was strange to hear her partner openly admit to liking someone else, no matter how superfluous she claimed the relationship to be.

"Yeah, I guess we did," the blonde said. "But like every other relationship at that age, it had to end sometime. When the night came to a close, we said our goodbyes and promised to hang out more often. At least, that's what I did. When his mom came to pick him up, he gave me this weird look that was sort of a stare, sort of not. I guess he must have liked me for a while before he asked me out because when his mom pulled up to the school's curb, he suddenly told me that he loved me." Blake's brows furrowed in confusion. "I didn't say anything. Who could? He just smiled at me again and then left."

Yang frowned. "I never saw him after that. I found out later that his dad got a gig in Mistral and they all moved away after the dance." She sighed. "I don't think I ever liked him like that, but I think I needed to hear someone say that."

It was at this point that Blake felt the need to ask a question. "Yang, it doesn't make much sense to me why you would shift so suddenly from crestfallen to comforted over something so…abrupt. Why did he have such an effect on you when you did not want to accept any sort of relationship at the time?"

"I was eleven, Blake. Not much from back then makes sense anymore." She shrugged. "I guess I needed to hear something positive and have a good relationship, even if it was only for a night. It certainly took the bad taste out of my mouth and I found myself more open and friendly after that dance.

"I don't know why he said he loved me. Maybe he did, maybe he didn't. But whatever he meant, I knew that there was bound to be someone out there who actually loved me—someone who would make what my mom said come true." She momentarily tightened the embrace Blake was in and rubbed her arm. "And I think that's you, Blake. I really hope I don't mess this relationship up like the others."

There was that phrase again. "The others." While Blake did enjoy what her partner had said about her being the key to an apparent prophecy a meager decade in age, the statement following it was confusing. Perhaps it was only wishful thinking, but Blake did not want to accept that there were relationships past that boy, if only for her partner's wellbeing. However, she knew that this would be the case. "I assume that those two were not the worst?"

"Oh, no," Yang chuckled. "No, the first guy set me on a path that'll continue for the rest of my life, but other than that, those two were really not that important."

"And there are worse stories?"

The immediate response Blake received was that of a reflective smile pointed down the path they were to walk. However, this smile did not indicate any happy sentiment. Alongside conversational context and experience in understanding Yang's tells, Blake knew that this was to be a rather rough story that the blonde was only now coming to terms with. And in this regard, she would unfortunately be correct.

"When I was thirteen, I got into Signal. I knew I wanted to be a huntress because that was how I was going to chase my dreams. It was how I was going to fight monsters, become a legend, and see the world and all it has to offer. I love the rush that fighting gives and I did when I was thirteen, too. I didn't have a specialized fighting style by that point and I didn't have a weapon. I was still young then—we all were at that school. And with young age comes immaturity, I guess. Though, I'm not exactly the epitome of 'grown up', huh?"

Blake returned to resting her head against her partner's shoulder. Surely an introduction as frivolous as this preceded an event that required comfort. This was her intent in returning to Yang's shoulder. She felt as though acting like a sort of cathartic distraction by way of physical contact would eventually ease Yang's burden whenever she chose to vent her concerns. Blake found that she was correct almost immediately as the arm wrapped around her shoulder pulled her closer.

"I only dated one other person between this next guy and the last, but that was just a really short thing and I don't even like referring to it as 'dating.' This next guy, though…_that _was dating. At least for a thirteen-year-old.

"He was a year older than me, but we were in the same CQC Basic class. He was good—_real _good—at what he did. The guy could throw a mean elbow and was known throughout the school for being ruthless in matches. A lot of people were scared of him because of that, but not me. After the relationship I just got out of, I was seeking attention, trying to speed up that search for the love my mom talked about. At the same time, I was just starting to get really involved in becoming a huntress and all the training required of it. Some part of me thought that he would be like a storybook champion—a strong, mean man with a heart of gold—and because of that, I went after him.

"We hit it off almost immediately. He had the same drive I did and wanted to chase that rush of adrenaline. Looking back on the whole thing, that was probably the only similarity we ever had, but that didn't stop me from wanting to like him. I guess I thought that through him, I could become the best fighter in the school, but I was just a kid then." She sighed. "He responded well to my advances, training with me whenever I asked, complimenting me whenever I complimented him, flirting back whenever I went after him—basically, when I said 'Hey', he said 'Hey' back. Eventually, I asked him out and he said something super-cool and disinterested like, 'Sure. Whatever.' And that was that. We were dating and I couldn't have been happier.

"For the next two weeks, we hung out, sparred together, ate lunch together, went out on a couple of dates, and even kissed in front of other people—you know, for popularity purposes again. Dating someone was just the 'in' thing to do, and I think this guy knew that. I did, too, but it really wasn't about that. The thing was, I couldn't ever get his attention after school because he always wanted to hang out with his friends instead. I don't think I'm the clingy type, but I'd like at least some sort of attention for this kind of thing."

She paused and dropped her expression to the grey stone below. If Blake was correct, this next part would be that of the relationship's breaking point. This assumption was further evidenced by the renewed vigor with which Yang held her partner near.

"So, one day, I went up to him during school and talked to him about it like anyone in a relationship with a problem should. I wasn't mean about it or anything, I just told him that if we were going to be dating, we should at least spend time with each other and make some sort of an effort to look like we're together. I don't remember exactly how it all went down, but he disagreed and I disagreed with the disagreement and it all—relationship and everything—ended with him slapping me in front of his friends."

Blake surprised herself with the sheer fury that instinctually welled up inside of her. Despite the event taking place before she could have had a hand in its cessation, the Faunus felt a protective instinct seize her. Of course, this fury did come from the boy's abuse of such a loving soul, but it should be said that a fair amount of this outrage spawned from the fact that Blake had not been there for Yang. Had she been there, there would have been no fight, Yang would not have been slapped, and she most certainly would not have had to date that boy. At this point, the Faunus was certain she would have traded her time with the White Fang for an education at Signal Academy only for the effect of saving Yang from that unnamed boy. A scowl subconsciously crossed her countenance as she asked, "Are you all right? He didn't hurt you, did he?" She shuddered to think of what her own reaction would be if the answer was in the affirmative.

"Me? Blake, a slap's nothing." The girl in black moved to argue, but Yang shook her head. "Even back then, I had a high pain tolerance. It wasn't the slap itself that hurt, but what it meant. It told me that he didn't value me at all—I was just another 'girlfriends are dumb' realization. I don't know why he stayed with me if he never liked me. I guess it was for the social aspect of it, but I really think he hated me by the end of those two weeks. I'm glad it didn't go any further and I'm sort of glad I got to that point, too. I could have gone without the slap, but what that entire thing taught me was that if I didn't like someone or they didn't like me, it wasn't worth investing all my time in the person. There's also the part about not hurting those who care for you."

"Did you do anything to him?" Knowing Yang, some sort of immediate reprisal would have occurred. And if she was to be honest, Blake hoped that this would be the case, if only so her own concern would be satiated. "Did you say anything back?"

The embrace Blake was wrapped in warmed excitedly as a gradual grin appeared on Yang's features. "Blake, you should have seen it. I completely destroyed the guy after that!" Blake heaved a sigh of contented relief and continued to listen with rapt attention to her partner's tale of vengeance. "Either his dad never told him to not hit girls or his mom never told him that girls hit back harder, but I bet he doesn't remember much of what happened before that moment. I just decked the guy and he went out in one hit. I mean, I probably should have stopped there, but I thought we could have been something, so I just wailed on him until a couple professors broke us up." She laughed. "He was expelled and probably walked away with a few concussions while I was taken to the headmaster's office and was only suspended for a week on the grounds of 'self-defense.' It probably helped that my dad taught there because when I got home, he told me never to do that again. But he seemed proud and let me pick what we ate that night."

"And what of the lingering effects of this relationship?" the young Faunus asked. "You said that he taught you not to invest time in anyone who did not suit you. I assume this holds some relevance to the stories to come?"

Yang nodded. "After him, I dated more than a few other guys. I don't even remember the number, but it was high enough to where I got a bit of a bad reputation. It was always the same thing with each of them: I see a guy I might like, I go up to him and flirt a bit—I got really good at that part for a while—and then we would go out for a few days before I'd decide he wasn't worth it after all. I know it was heartless, but it was all part of that search. I never considered any of them as boyfriends, really, and I don't think they considered me as a girlfriend either. It was just dumb kid stuff and I think we all knew it. I never really had to dump anybody at the time; the relationships kinda ended themselves. Honestly, it got boring after a while, and just when I thought I would give up on the search, one relationship lasted for more than a few days."

"The guy was consistently average in just about everything other than his confidence—that was what I liked about him." Her slight smile drooped again into an unfortunate frown that Blake could only hope to rectify in time. "He was convinced he was going to get into Beacon and lead his own team; he had a roadmap planned out for it and everything. He was pretty bad at fighting and couldn't take more than a few hits, but he could get people to follow him. He wasn't the smoothest talker out there, but he just had this confidence behind everything he said. It was as though his word was law and those around him followed."

It seemed as though there was something else she wanted to say but did not. A sigh interrupted her speech and she looked down to the pavement below. It was not a reflective or contented sigh at all, but that of a discontented murmur. "I guess I was one of those people who blindly followed him. I've never been the best at dealing with people who speak better than me, and that guy…" This sentence trailed off.

"Yang?" Blake asked hesitantly. "What happened with him? Did he harm you?"

She paused for an unsettling moment before responding. "Maybe I shouldn't tell you this one. There's another that you should probably know about before we get to the store."

"Yang." The blonde looked to her partner and found the Faunus holding a worried frown. "If you feel unable to speak about this specific incident, don't. I will not hold it against you. I just want you to know that whatever occurred in your past is out of our reach. Nothing you could say would dissuade me from being with you. If you want to speak about it, I will be here. If not, do not think much of it. This is your story and to compose it based on my comfort would be wrong."

There was another pause, this one longer than the last, as Yang took these words in. Blake returned to her position against the warm figure and pulled her closer with the arm wrapped around her waist. Whatever happened with this boy was telling of scruples the Faunus had not known existed. She had an idea of what the subject of betrayal would eventually become, but the thought alone made her blush. However, this blush was not exclusively embarrassed. Blake would harbor rational hatred towards this unidentified individual because of her assumption and its vile nature. But before these tangential thoughts were given any further time to fester, Yang gave a happy sigh and smiled down at her partner. "Thanks, Blake. I'll tell you about him one day, but now's not the time. Just know that after him, I stopped dating for a while. Like, it took me over a year to build up the courage to ask someone out again. And after the next one, it was you."

Although the assurance was endearing, Blake could not bring herself to smile. Yang seemed at ease with telling these stories and making retrospective commentary on them, but her partner was still concerned. Admittedly, there had been a stinging sensation that came with the knowledge that she was not Yang's first relationship, but Blake had always known this on some level and simply did not want to accept it. However, there was one more romantic relationship in Yang's life and she seemed willing to speak about it, if only to move away from the prior story. "Yang?" the Faunus asked. "Are these stories purposefully placed in any sort of order? I am aware of the chronology of them, but I am wondering of the increasing severity. These relationships seemed to have ranged from forgetfully childish to haunting. I am worried that the next story will be the worst yet."

Yang gave a short laugh and wrapped her other arm around the Faunus to form a more traditional hug as they walked. It was a disarming action, but Blake was not entirely convinced. "No," the blonde chuckled, "that last guy was the worst of them. That's why I'm holding off on talking about him. The story with the next guy is pretty bad, but at least I'm willing to talk about him."

"You know that you do not have to continue if you are uncomfortable?" Blake looked up to meet her partner's gaze with a careful frown. "If this is bringing back any bad memories, you do not have to continue."

"It's all right. This is actually helping, I think. Getting all this stuff off my chest is making it a lot easier to deal with. But if you want me to stop, I will."

Blake did want her partner to stop, but not for her own sake. The young Faunus believed that to air one's historical faults was to recall harsher times and climates. Such was not her idea of recovery, but Yang had claimed its merits. Perhaps she was still yet a coward and dared not look back into the shadow of her past, but Yang was courageous and braved the darkness to willingly shine a light on the obscenities that can only rot in time. "If your reminiscence is helping," Blake sighed, "do not let me stand in your way." The young Faunus could bear the given knowledge; she simply feared for her partner.

Yang shook her head and teased with a chiding tone, "Blake, you could never get in my way. You're the reason I'm talking about all this. I want you to know about this stuff now rather than later when it might become an issue. I'm not saying that what we have won't last or that it's shallow, I'm saying that what we have is special and, if I have any say in the matter, is going to last us a _long_ time."

It took a moment to come to terms with this information and Yang's apparent indifference towards telling these stories. Eventually, Blake would nod into her shoulder, silently allowing for her continuance and granting her a nuzzle of care.

"Okay," Yang breathed, her smile turning into the same thoughtful frown from before, "this next one happened during my third year at Signal. I was still taking a break from the dating scene at the time so that I could help Ruby get through her first year there and so that I could get my life in order before heading to Beacon. I actually liked not being with anyone for a while. I could focus on those I cared about—Ruby, friends, dad—and I didn't have to worry about going out when I should have been studying. Well, that last part's made up, but you get the idea.

"Anyways, I still had that reputation buzzing around me from that time I dated all those guys, and the last guy—the one I can't tell you about yet—kinda made it worse. I thought I could get away from that reputation by going a year without dating anyone. I mean, I still flirted with people, but it never went anywhere—I thought I was just being nice.

"One day during, I think, the second semester, I met a guy in a Forging class and we kinda hit it off. I threw one pun out there and he threw another, and before we knew it, the class was over and we had to stay after to make up the work we missed. I didn't think about dating him at the time; I thought he would just be a friend. However, what started as accidentally missing work became something we actively tried to do. I don't know exactly what it was that made me like him, but we just meshed. He was outgoing, strong, had the same sense of humor I did, and we had a class together. At that age, that's pretty much all we needed to start going out, but I was still settling down after that last guy. But eventually, I caved and asked him if he wanted to get dinner somewhere and he said yes.

"Personality-wise, the guy seemed great—a total sweetheart. We didn't go out too often, but I thought it was because he was respecting my decision to dial back how often I went out with people. We saw a couple movies together, he took me out a few times, and I even introduced him to Ruby. I tried to take this one slow for once and I thought I was doing a pretty good job at it. We went out for about a month and a half until I met his girlfriend."

Blake raised a confused eyebrow. "That was a shocker," Yang stated flatly. "It was one of the days he said he couldn't spend time with me—he always used an excuse like, 'There's a lot of work I need to make up in some class.' I thought I'd surprise him with a hug, but when I did that, it turned out that I hugged him in front of his girlfriend who he had been with for around two years. She threw a fit at me first. I can't say that she wasn't justified in what she did, but I also can't say I didn't yell back. I just didn't want to believe that the first guy I dated in a year would turn out to be a scumbag after being so nice. Eventually, we both turned on him and just yelled at him in front of the entire school."

"So, he cheated on you?"

Yang nodded. "You know, it's weird to find that you were never the relationship, but the affair. It was like that kid way back when I was eight. It was like I didn't mean anything to him and I was just some throwaway he could do whatever he wanted to. I learned my lesson the first time, and after the relationship before this guy, I was just about ready to rip his head off." Her gaze turned downward. "Honestly, I didn't know what to do except yell at him. That was the longest relationship I ever had and I thought it was going somewhere, but then I found out it didn't mean anything. I guess it was all still a popularity contest to everyone then when I was searching for what my mom told me to find. Maybe I shouldn't have been looking so hard and maybe I shouldn't have trusted all those people, but I did."

The grip on the Faunus tightened desperately as the blonde rested her head against her partner's. Though the girl in black could not see it, Yang's atypical frown deepened into a look of regret and unadmitted anguish.

"It hurts to think about them, it really does. I didn't date anyone after him until you, and even when you asked me, I was a little scared. I mean, if I had trouble with everyday guys, how was I going to deal with a Faunus girl—a Faunus girl I would have to spend the next three years with? I guess the fear still exists—the fear that you'll leave me or throw me to the side—but I know you're better than that, Blake. Still, those guys messed with my head and even I can't deny it. But I'm not going to let them get to me. I've still got a sister to take care of an a career to pursue."

Her tone had drifted into one more insecure than confident and each successive syllable stung the ears of the young Faunus. She was understating how severely her past experiences affected her and her façade was crumbling piteously. Blake knew that there was more to these stories, but she also believed that shedding light on the unfortunate details would doubtlessly evoke an uncharacteristic reaction. However, this sort of reaction was already taking place before her eyes and it hurt to see Yang in any kind of pain. The blonde doubted herself as well as those around her—in this way, she was like Blake, who could not help but empathize. The young Faunus nuzzled into Yang's neck as an attempt to assuage these unsettling memories, but even this could not comfort her partner. Blake did not frown or resign, but instead decided that more direct action was required to assist her partner.

She could see the music store in the distance, perhaps a few minutes away from where they now walked and thus too close for any conventional attempts at comforting Yang. Such a distance required immediately affecting action that would speak not to the logical side of Yang's mind, but her emotional heart. This distance required an action more physical in its reassurance than rationalizing. As such, Blake spied an alleyway only a few buildings ahead and decided upon her rather uncharacteristic plan with a well-concealed blush and an undeterred sense of concern. It took only a minute for the two to reach this corridor, and when they did, Blake pulled her partner down it and away from the prying eyes of the public.

In a matter of moments, the two were shrouded by the shadows of the alley and the Faunus' obfuscating semblance that contorted to her need. Yang's back was pressed against the building's wall and her lips met Blake's in a sudden, crashing embrace. This kiss and all its emotions were necessary to communicate what Blake could not articulate in the words she had been raised upon. The kiss was desperate, it was conciliatory, but most of all, it was unconditionally loving and as Blake held her partner against that wall, Yang pulled her closer in kind, conveying her unspoken need for enduring companionship as her aura flared in a mix of happiness and thankfulness.

Surprisingly, Blake began to tear up at her own show of affection. This effect was not caused by the boldness that had proven effective, but because of what Yang had endured. It was sickening to know that she could not be there for her partner when she needed her most—to help fight the boy who slapped her, to keep her from the boy who cheated on her, to dance with her when the boy moved away. Yang had proven countless times that she was not one to be squandered with her selfless behavior and devil-may-care approach to any of life's problems. She was one of the few allies Blake had and was the only one that the Faunus would defend without question whenever conflict arose. Yang had accepted her without hesitation when White Fang affiliations were revealed; Yang had confided in her information known only to herself and her sister; Yang had been a dear friend to a girl who had none to her memory; Yang had shown her a relationship that, in all her years, Blake could never have even dreamed about; and Yang stood beside the Faunus throughout their voyage to Sierra and the reconnection to a family that was believed to be lost forever. Blake tried her hardest, but her remorseful sentiments took precedence over the kiss. Their lips departed from one another's and their foreheads met wearily as the tears in the Faunus' eyes fell.

"I'm sorry, Yang. I should have been there. I could have helped you. I could have done something."

"Blake," Yang soothed between heated breaths. "What's gotten into you?" The Faunus shuddered and buried her face in the crook of her partner's neck. The blonde acted in kind, rubbing Blake's back and whispering silent reassurances all the while.

She was doing it again. She was being selfless when the situation required attention and affection to be placed solely on her. It was frustrating to Blake, and this only made her shudder again. This, in kind, forced Yang to redouble her efforts, creating a cyclical pattern of altruism and dissatisfaction.

Yang did not deserve the treatment she had been given, the hand she had been dealt. It was all painful to think about—her mother's passing, her father's apathy, her biological mother's desertion, the care that Ruby required growing up, and now all of these bad relationships that scored the trust of the loving blonde. "Yang," Blake whispered, "I'll never leave you. I'll never leave you."

"I know, kitten. That's why I said yes. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me."

Blake allowed these words to sink in. The form that enveloped her was not one she was meant to feel sorry for but one she was meant to cherish and ensure a better life for. Yang had been attempting to teach her the entire summer that the past was outside of their control and it was their future that they could make better. Blake did come to acknowledge this statement as probable fact, but she could never bring herself to believe it. Perhaps it was lingering White Fang ideals that led to the unwillingness to accept her girlfriend's truth. The organization fought for the future because of the past—a noble cause in its own right, but when coupled with an obsession with past indiscretions so miniscule in importance that those who fight know not of their relevance, this objectivity fades quickly into the realm of irrationality. Yang was now stating that Blake was a point in her life from which all subsequent events would turn positive. And though Blake believed she was only bad luck, she would accept this truth, if only so that it could make her partner happy.

The two would remain in this embrace with Yang's back against the wall and their heads resting against one another's for some indeterminate amount of time. Minutes became inconsequential when the only matter of importance was that of the other's comfort. As Blake held herself close to her partner, consciously assuring that everything would be all right and subconsciously telling herself the same, Yang calmly stroked the tangle of raven hair, running her fingers through it gently and whispering soft assurances into her partner's ear.

Eventually, the tears would dry, but Blake's stance on these past relationships would never change from that of wanting to be there. "Are you all right?" Yang would ask. Blake's only response was to lie and nod so to not give any reason for the blonde to fall into the same pit of anguish. "There, there." Yang moved her hand from her partner's hair and down to her back. "Take however long you need. It's going to be okay, Blake. I'm here for you."

The Faunus simply held her partner for these subsequent few minutes as she tried to compose herself. She knew that she was holding an uncharacteristic expression, but she did not care—this was the point of ducking into an alleyway and shrouding herself and her partner in shadows. This frown and weakened state came from Yang's vulnerability, but now that this susceptibility had faded away and the blonde wore a strong façade, Blake had no reason to remain this way. This pain gradually became a quiet peace within the arms of her partner, and as this shift in emotion occurred, Yang had somehow realized it.

The blonde gave a quiet laugh. "You know, if you act that way when I'm feeling down, I should probably make it a habit to bring up bad exes more often."

The Faunus pulled away and tired amber met brilliant lilac before Blake gave a small smirk. "I'm sorry, Yang, but I doubt I could bring myself to do that more often. It's just not who I am."

Yang laughed again. "Oh, fine," she said in mock disappointment. "I guess I'll just have to deal with everyday, humdrum, bookworm Blake." For only a moment, the girl in black felt the need to defend herself, but she realized upon seeing her partner's grin that she would never have to explain herself in such a way. "After all, that's the girl I fell in love with." Blake gave a small laugh of her own as her face flushed a revitalized shade of red. "So," Yang eventually began again, "all better?"

"Yeah," Blake sighed. "How about you?"

The blonde chirped, "Yup! Are you ready to head over to the music store or do we need to take another minute?"

"I think I'm ready." As she said this, Blake released the shadows around them, causing no discernible change from their perspectives, but a dissipating effect like that of a cloud of smoke when viewed from the perspective of a passerby on the sidewalk.

The two returned to their route with Blake nuzzling against her partner's shoulder once again as the blonde's arm rested atop the Faunus. Now that the pain of Yang's past was taken care of to some temporary degree, Blake knew that her own discomfort was yet to come. However, she had Yang by her side, and if the blonde could remain intact after discussing memories that were arguably more debilitating, Blake could surely make it through this next trip. After all, the ensuing memories could not come close to the pain Sierra had evoked and Yang had soothed.

It is to note that the hesitation on the young Faunus' part has its roots in memories, not of the White Fang, but of Sierra. When she first fled for the organization, she left behind a lot. Not only were there personal belongings she failed to find space for, she renounced her education, her home, her family, and in the case of what pertains to this upcoming store, her musical teachings. Though she was only eight at the time she left, music had been a rather enjoyable hobby to her. Now she was afraid of what her flight from Sierra might have caused in this regard. She knew already of changes to her personality and temperament, but these would have altered in time regardless. For this reason, she was scared of finding what latent repercussions existed from her time with the organization.

The store drew nearer and the sky tinged a deep blue as the sun set beyond the spires of the city around her. An ill wind rushed by and the faces of those anonymous crowd members seemed to grow apprehensive. Traffic slowed to a crawl and the life of the city felt as though it had died away, but Blake knew this was all in her mind. She still felt the effects of Yang's stories and knew she would continue to hold them close to her heart for the coming days, but added to this was the pain of the unknown. The Faunus' mind continued to play tricks on her by heightening her sense of hearing so that she could notice the sounds of her own footsteps amidst the noise of the city and making the nearby shop stretch far off into the horizon.

Fortunately, Yang walked beside her and would act as a suitable distraction until they reached the entrance of the store. Blake did not bother glancing at its name or what it looked like, instead keeping her eyes closed and all of her other senses focused on her partner. It was in the warmth of the blonde's embrace that she could find solace and the means of bolstering her courage. She would continue to feel uneasy about learning what the results of her flight were, but she would move confidently beside her partner out of the darkening city and into the dimmed glow of the music store.

When her eyes next opened to the electronic tone of the door's sensor, she was met with a world long forgotten. There was no immediate reaction upon seeing the store—no rude awakening or revelatory triumph. Instead, she was met with a bleak silence of the mind. It was as she feared. The memories would not flood back to her and those eight years before her flight seemed stricken from existence. It is not to say that Blake suffered from any woebegone melancholy of years long past, but that she was disappointed like a child would be if an idea were proven false before her very eyes. In this way, Blake simply stared at the store with a mix of fear that these memories did not, in fact, exist and hope that they could be spurred by some evocative instrument.

A man walked towards the two, welcoming them and asking if they required assistance, but Blake could not hear anything more than this. While she ducked under her girlfriend's chin as an attempt to find warmth and security from her own thoughts, the Faunus scanned the guitar-covered walls and displays of synthesizers and drums in search of some reminiscent factor.

Nothing made sense to her. All of the displays were faraway echoes of a time now reft of innocence. That was what these instruments were, she figured, innocence. She was a monster now—a coward—who had left behind a normal, decent life. And with the White Fang and the time it had taken from her came atrophy. Nothing was allowed within the ranks of the organization—not music, reading, writing, or even individual speech—but she had come to abide by this, willingly at that. Looking to these instruments and hearing this silence not only brought about feelings of regret, but memories of a hated period in her life.

Yang must have noticed her partner's expression because she brushed off the employee as kindly as she could before moving Blake further into the store. "Hey, are you all right? What's wrong?" The couple rounded a corner to move out of the vulturine employees' lines of sight before Yang turned the Faunus to face her. "Blake, what's going on?"

"I…I don't know." Blake turned to look at the shelves around them. It was all guitar equipment, and though she was not trained in the instrument's usage, it should have caused some reaction on her part. She turned back to Yang and found a worried expression. "I'm sorry, Yang. I suppose I expected some sort of immediate response upon returning here. It's just that nothing is coming back to me."

There was a moment where Yang looked to be in deep thought before she frowned. "I can't say I know exactly what you're going through, but I'll help in any way I can. We came here for you to have a good time, not to bring up bad memories." Blake did not react to this in any way other than looking down at the floor.

Was she hindering her partner by going against their original intent? Was she dragging Yang back into negativity after she had moved away from it with her stories? Was she overreacting? Blake did not have time to entertain these thoughts as Yang lifted the Faunus' chin. "Blake, remember the Mistral Festival? Remember the band? You looked so excited when they started to play. Try and go back to that moment, try to remember what it was like listening to them play. Maybe then you'll get your memories back."

Blake initially hesitated, but she would go along with Yang's idea. Not once had the blonde led her astray this summer and had only benefitted her in otherwise immutable matters.

She took a short breath and closed her eyes. In an instant, she was carried back to Sierra and the North Wind Park and the aged tree against which she and her partner rested as the orchestra played below. She remembered having her eyes closed in a similar manner as Yang brushed her hair languidly. The blonde must have remembered this, too, for she mimicked her past action without any sort of encouragement and caused a small smile to eventually break through the Faunus' doubtful visage.

It was a song from her childhood that played, one that could soothe her innermost demons without so much as a hint of remorse. It was grand, it was powerful, and her company was moving at the most heartfelt level. With two ears she listened to the variable melodies all serving the same tune's purpose and with her others she heard the simple, rhythmic beat of her girlfriend's heart. From across the small valley, she felt the boom of the timpani as though she were in the front row again, but from scant centimeters away, she felt the warmth of Yang's form envelop her and cure the ailing headache and dizziness. And in this moment of reflective bliss wherein she was wrapped in the benevolent embrace of her dearest friend, she remembered.

Before Blake could articulate a proper sentence or understand the importance of literature in her life, Lilian attempted to teach her piano. The only reason this is stated as an attempt was due to Blake's regretful flight and inability to continue with her mother. By the time White Fang propaganda had buried its claws into her morality, she had been fairly skilled at the instrument for her age and held an insatiable desire to learn more. Though this loss was disheartening, the thirst for knowledgeable progress still existed, but manifested itself more so in introversive and introspective matters such as reason and reading instead of audible or expressive actions such as music or writing. However, as disheartening as this divergence was in retrospect, she was still happy that the memories were coming back to her.

Blake remained silent as she remembered those long-lost days of her mother patiently waiting on her to learn which key meant what and which notes were placed where on the paper. Throughout this, Yang continued to hold her partner and glare at any employees who came to see if they needed assistance. After a few minutes of silence and stillness, Yang asked, "All better?", to which Blake nodded and smiled.

"Thank you," she said quietly. She opened her eyes and found that the memories thankfully lingered. Moreover, Yang was still there and would never leave.

"So, are you going to show me what you played or what?" As Blake pulled away, she found her partner sporting a dismissive grin, one that told of her shallow motive to move the conversation away from the harshness of the past and towards the positivity of their original purpose. Blake nodded and the two left their alcove in the guitar section in search of pianos.

Blake no longer held any fearful sentiments—at least not for the time being. She should have been paying attention to what Yang kept trying to tell her. The past was outside of her control, and though rectifications still could be made, there was no power on Remnant that could undo what had been done. Her argument with her parents, her flight from Sierra, and her allegiance to an undue cause had all been voluntary actions to which she had to suffer the consequences for. But she had been doing so for the past decade, leaving this logic to be more comforting than harrowing. Attention should be placed on the present and the future rather than what unchangeable atrocities had already been incurred. Her past was of that shadowy organization, her present was of this dimly lit room filled with inspirations of a quieter time, and her future was of the shining girl of gold and lilac that stood proudly beside the Faunus. The heavier sentiments of before were washed away by a serene smile the likes of which could never have existed before this summer break.

The couple would meander through the shelves and spaces, idly browsing what the store had to offer and taking their time with the journey to Blake's instrument of choice. Every so often, Yang would interact with what was nearest to her, absent-mindedly strumming a guitar on the wall, tapping a set of drums, toying with a bar chime, and occasionally humming along to a classic rock song that played quietly over the ceiling's speakers. All the while, Blake found herself entranced by her partner's unwitting curiosity. Though Yang's only reason for being here was to appease her partner, she did not seem inconvenienced in the least. For this, the young Faunus could not help but smile at that loving figure beside her.

After a few minutes of aimless wandering and pleasantly inconsequential conversation, Blake would spot the section designated for her instrument of choice. Eventually, the two would arrive upon another alcove which contained what she had been looking for—rather, the type of instrument. Despite her more confident state of mind, Blake halted upon seeing the imposing grand piano shimmering in the lights that kept it on display. She had been taught on an upright and had never once touched anything of this calibre. A fleeting thought came to mind that she might break it, but the presence of Yang made sure that this wasn't the case. With a jubilant grin, the blonde asked, "So, you play piano?" Blake continued to stare at the spectacle but nodded nonetheless. "Sweet!" her partner exclaimed. "A girlfriend that knows how to use her fingers!"

The awe of the moment fell away completely for an embarrassed blush and indignant glare pointed at the blonde.

"Sorry!" the girl chuckled sheepishly. "I just had to say it."

This comment would fade in importance and the blush in intensity as Blake began to rationalize the comment's harmlessness and moved towards the piano. Rather, she felt compelled to bypass these flustering sentiments to focus on what was now in front of her and the memories that she still yet held.

If ever there could be a time to call the young Faunus hesitant or afraid as she so often described herself, it would be in this moment of her forward crawl and uncertain contact with the cold finish of the wood. There was neither dreamy stupor nor humbled trepidation that kept the Faunus from nearing the piano, but the belief that she would somehow harm it in her atrophied state. However, that encouraging force beside her took the initiative and pulled back the bench. The Faunus' uncharacteristically slow, clumsy movement eventually led her to sit and stare at the reminiscently intimidating row of ivory and the mirrored music rack above. From her stare into this latter object, she saw a person that was not herself, but the person she had been when last she sat in this position. She saw her mother sitting beside her, lacking the grey of stressful abandonment and holding that same slight smile the young Faunus would adopt in time. She saw her father behind them, grinning proudly as his wife played a beginner's tune just slow enough for the young child to mimic. Blake saw herself of twelve or so years ago, smiling widely like Ruby and Yang often did and observing her mother's tutorial movements.

She then saw a figure of gold step into view, in front of the father and behind the young Faunus. Yang smirked eagerly, wrapped her arms warmly around Blake's neck, and whispered the invitation of "Show me what you can do, kitten." Blake lingered in this position for a moment, simply basking in the energy of her girlfriend and settling into the acceptance of her past becoming her present in this current situation. After this moment's passing, Blake nodded to herself and pressed a finger to a key.

The sound shook her from her reflective reverie. It was so far detached from what seemed natural to this world—it was pure and resonating but mnemonically hollow. Blake pressed the key again and was met with the same silence of the past. She pressed another key and its sound came out rigid and forced. The cause of this, she found, was her fingers' unwillingness to simply touch the keys; after all her years of combat training, the digits now required a forceful motion like that of pressure being applied to her blade's handle or her gun's trigger. A frown crossed her features as she attempted to press a key with her opposite hand and found the same result. Perhaps a chord would work? She attempted this, but did not remember any such patterns, resulting in a negligent discord.

"Blake?" her partner asked, removing her arms from the Faunus' neck and moving to sit beside her on the small bench. The girl in question did not answer but stared insistently at the keys, attempting to will her memories back into existence. "Blake, what's wrong?"

"It's not working." Blake stubbornly pressed another key and heard a dissonant contrast between it and the last pitch.

"What's not working?" The blonde's brows furrowed.

"My memory." Again, a chord was attempted. While this attempt did yield more harmonious results, it still did not evoke any sort of song or knowledge that she had left behind. "I used to be able to play, Yang, but I can't remember anything." She pressed another key. "It's as if I've lost that knowledge."

"Blake…" Yang gently moved her partner's hand away from the keys. "You're just rusty is all. Give it time and you'll be back in peak shape." Her partner was silent as she continued to stare at the instrument. Yang sighed and then released the Faunus. "Here," she said, sitting up straight and moving her own fingers over the keyboard, "let me try something."

When she depressed a key, the sound that came from the instrument was rich and reassuring, but Yang seemed surprised. She pressed another and nodded to an idea she quickly devised. The blonde flashed a smile at her partner before she started to hum. The song was slowed and each note was elongated so that the corresponding key could be found, but Blake quickly recognized that Yang was playing a children's lullaby. As the tune progressed, its speed increased and so too did the blonde's confidence. It was a simple song, using only one note at a time, but Blake knew the melody from those formative years in the shadows of her mind.

On instinct, the young Faunus reached out to the daunting row of ivory and imitated her partner's movements, hearing the melodic tone of her voice and matching the varying pitches on the keyboard. Surprisingly, it seemed to be working and the notes sounded correct, causing the concerned expression to vanish.

The song moved at a reluctant pace and errors arose frequently, but as the two played on their separate octaves, Blake's memories gradually came back to her. She would not recover the skill she had once possessed nor would she remember enough to embellish or improvise over the song, but as she played in tandem with her partner, a confidence rose within her and the pitches she once thought unnatural became beautiful.

Yang would continue to hum and the song's tempo would eventually reach a speed similar to that of the original tune. They would play together for a while, matching each other's pace, smiling whenever either made a mistake, and repeating the song multiple times over due to Yang forgetting how it ended. Though it was but one children's song, it made Blake smile and this reaction caused Yang to beam. As she looked again to the music rack, she saw the shadows of her father grinning at her, her mother standing beside him with a smile wider than any Blake had ever seen from the stoic woman, and the tangible form of Yang sitting beside the young Faunus, radiating an earnest, prideful heat.

The song would eventually fade into silence around the point that it was meant to end. Blake turned to her partner, unable to contain a thankful grin. Yang simply giggled as she rested her head against Blake's shoulder. "See? What did I tell you?" She sighed contentedly. "You were just rusty."

Blake barely contained a laugh as she shook her head. "Thank you, Yang." She leaned down to kiss the top of her girlfriend's head. "I didn't know you played piano."

"Neither did I! I guess those music classes in middle school paid off after all." She nuzzled against Blake's neck for a moment before sitting up. "That was fun—probably more fun than laser tag, to be honest." The two quietly laughed in the silence they now purveyed. A fleeting, serious glance was shared between them amongst this mirth that communicated something that somehow made the Faunus' smile widen even further—something that could not be expressed even in a three-word statement. Yang let this silence linger until the moment seemed proper to ask, "What do you want to do for dinner? It's getting late and we can't let Weiss steal all the fun tonight."

"Wherever you would like to go is fine. I'm still a bit…off my game after today, but anywhere you choose will be fine."

Yang smirked. "Well then, I think that since we've had such a hard day and since Weiss and Ruby are off on their own adventure, we should treat ourselves to something nice. I was thinking we could find a quiet place that'll serve some pasta or, if you want, we could get sushi somewhere. I know a really great place by the Esplanade that we could go to. It'd take us a little while to get there from here, but I think it'll be worth it."

There truly was no end to the care Yang could give, was there? "Pasta is fine," Blake responded with a smile.

"Pasta it is!" The blonde stood from the bench and offered a hand to Blake. The Faunus took it and intertwined their fingers as she stood. "So, feeling better yet?"

Blake nodded. "Marginally."

"Marginally?" Yang exclaimed. "Well, that just won't do. Come on. Let's go make this date put my sister's to shame."

In the wake of these most current events and poignant recollections, it should be said that Blake was, for the most relative part, unscathed. Though the memories that haunt them unarguably sting when brought to light, the promised future and warm present more than made up for this temporary pain. Company when else there would none soothed burning remorse and paved a way for the two to travel. Such was a path of recovery, friendship, togetherness, and, most of all, rectification. In this latter regard, Yang was the avenue through which the past had been not forgotten about, but forgiven. Yet atrocities still remained and Blake knew this just as Yang bore the insecurities of those she had interacted with in her greener years. To do away with these maledict visions would be to dishonor oneself, but through acceptance and personal betterment, repulsive horrors shift to dark stories from which one might benchmark a future decision or contrast the morality of a present choice. With hands locked together, the two of black and yellow exited into the dour blue of Vale's early night, into the cheerfully lit path provided by perennial conversation and warm lights which lined the city streets. It was not cold in the least nor was it hot whatsoever and there was not any concern to be held when staring into the unknown of their doubtlessly affectionate future.

That is, there had not been any concern or amount of hesitation in the mind of either girl until the fateful moment they left the quiet safety of the music store and stepped out into the rambunctious world whereupon a harrowing noise could be heard, not only in the augmenting ears of a Faunus, but from human senses as well, of a roaring, cantankerous variety which emanated from the faraway yet nevertheless approaching White Fang protest.

* * *

I apologize for the cliffhanger, but it had to be done. Without it, the next chapter's focus would seem sudden, jarring, and, in effect, forced. I'd rather state at the end of this chapter what the two arrived upon rather than giving the illusion that everything was fine and then start the next chapter with some excuse about how their situation truly was not fine. This cliffhanger is more so suited to transition into the next chapter upon later readings (when the story is complete) than it is to mildly inconvenience you. Though, I would be lying if I said the latter purpose did not play a part in my decision to end the chapter this way.

Now, moving on to Yang's relationship history (which I assume is a point of concern or interest for some of you), I should state that if her telling of the stories seemed flippant or unconcerned in any way, that is because she was attempting to appear unconcerned at the time of their telling. Such is Yang's character. Had someone like Blake or Weiss told the stories—someone who cares about the smaller details and the meanings behind them—then the stories would seem somber. With Yang, the stories could not be given a sad inflection until the very end when she looked back on all of them. However, this is not to discount the subject matter's severity—this is why Blake was in the scene, among the obvious reason.

She was meant to act as the grounding factor in the conversation in a similar way she acts to ground Yang in both reality and temperament. Blake took the stories to heart when Yang attempted to brush them off like they were nothing, moving such an unperturbed scene into one of deep concern (see: alleyway). In this way, a balance is shown between the two in a very ambiguous way. And in this secondary way, I am alluding to something more than likely important in their relationship's progression.

Finally, I should mention that through Yang's stories, there is the means of understanding why she treats Weiss the way she does.

In the last chapter, I promised that two stories would be posted before this chapter, being those of a Halloween one-shot and the first chapter of the White Rose novel (the short stories). The Halloween story is titled _Recompense_, and though it is probably dated by this point, it could be enjoyed. However, before this I would recommend reading the White Rose novel, _Edelweiss_. It takes place during the events of _Valence_ and sheds light on Ruby and Weiss' characters while showing the means of their relationship's progression. Though _Edelweiss_ is not necessary to read, it does play into _Valence_ later on and shows why certain events occurred between Weiss and Ruby. Both stories can be found in my profile.

I also promised in the last chapter that I would alternate between writing _Edelweiss_ and _Valence_ after each chapter. This will mean another wait of a similar length to this last one (about a month and a half) for the next chapter of _Valence_ to be released. Though the writing process may be expedited in some way, I do not want to sacrifice quality for an earlier release date. I hope this does not inconvenience anyone.

Thank you for reading. Stay safe and stay tuned.


	15. Chapter 15: The Protest

Welcome back. I'm sorry about the wait between this chapter and the last, I really am. Leaving you all with a cliffhanger that has gone unanswered for more than a month was perhaps an error in judgment on my part as to how long this chapter would take to write. As I get my footing with writing _Edelweiss_ and as well with swapping between the perspectives of Weiss and Blake in their respective stories, the chapters should become more natural to write and should be produced at a quicker rate. The fact that you all have stuck around despite the delay is something I cannot thank you enough for. So, once again, welcome back and thank you for reading.

Anyways, before I leave you with the chapter, there is a sort of disclaimer I should probably give. It should be assumed from this chapter's title that a protest will occur and will take precedence over the tale to be told. However, in light of current events and recent protests, it should be expressed that the protest in this chapter is in no way used as commentary on any topical issues. While literature has been perhaps the most influential of mediums to satirize cultural issues, the use of satire should be used tastefully and lucidly. With this chapter, open satire would be wholly inappropriate due to the nature of this story, and thus it is not represented here. There will be moments and opinions that do reflect historical protests and disagreements, but this chapter, when it was planned nearly a year ago, was not intended to satirize recent protests. Perhaps this explanation may seem unnecessary to some, but I'd imagine that there are others who might take this chapter the wrong way. If this proves to be the case, I apologize.

With that said, I should leave you with this chapter. Though it might not be the most light-hearted of instalments, I think chapter fifteen is a comparable addition.

* * *

Chapter 15: The Protest

In the absence of rationality which has, up until this point, frequently characterized our tale's focus, an express explanation is perhaps in order so to detail the chief factor in the impending events ahead of time for the sake of clarity and convenience. In this way, an understanding of matters yet to unfold might be gleaned and later contrasted with a rather irrational, reactionary perspective. Though, it is not to say that our focal character serves a fallacious existence through her assessment. Rather, Blake would find herself at a point which logicality and reason would leave her at the glimpse of evoked fear.

Such was the effect had on her by the White Fang protest. Of course, there had been multiple instances of conflict and combat involving the tenebrous group and the do-good team, but this particular protest would lead only to the former, never the latter. For Blake, the concept of this style of protest was reminiscent of her induction and indoctrination, matters harrowing to the observable outside and haunting to her perceived psyche. What is more is that while the association was doubtlessly there between the protest and the organization, no formal affiliations were set. This meant that the protest and all its bellowing members were not members of the White Fang but fought for its cause, however blindly. Secondarily, this would mean that conflict and combat would be wholly unjust, no matter how argumentative or spiteful this unarmed crowd would become.

It should be understood the denotations of "protest" in this case are only superficially comparable to what you understand to be "protests" in your war-averse world. In the case of a protest in a world oppressed by war which cannot be retreated from without extinction, and more specifically a "White Fang protest," the tenets of peace and insistence are usurped by the necessity for outrage and outrage vocalized—loudly, incessantly as would be necessary to communicate to preoccupied Remnant. Of course, the motives of equality and righteousness were prevalent but were seldom tantamount to vindication. The logistics and cooperation involved in these protests were verily akin go those you might expect of a protest, but these matters were mere superficialities beside the concepts of purpose and goal. Whereas the purpose of a protest in your society might be to further an ideal deemed just by those involved, the fundamental disparity held by a "White Fang protest" was the duality in purpose split between furthering a just cause (that of equality) and appeasing the older brother organization.

Because this particular protest was unconnected with the organization in ledger yet titled itself after them, it should give an indication that some sort of wishful sentiments existed with the protesters that the actual White Fang—that feared, revered group—might reveal themselves and aid the effort with their numbers and (what was never spoken about but always dreamed) weapons. But this would be denied upon every inquiry. In fact, a direct association would be assured to any inquisitor prior to an outraged castigation by all surrounding members of the numerous crowd.

From this, it should be explained that a "White Fang protest," a Faunus Rights protest, and a protest by the White Fang are all three separate matters. The two safest ends to this spectrum were the Faunus Rights protests and protests by the White Fang. In the former regard, these types of protests were much akin to what is expected of a protest and peaceful demonstration; many solid points were made and were subsequently heeded by lawmakers and politicians. These sorts had been Blake's intent in joining the White Fang. But in the latter regard, the regard which she had unfortunately aligned herself with, the protests were structured endlessly and executed with military precision. All members in these types of protests were true White Fang members, garbs and all, and their causes were usually direct in the form of strikes, boycotts, and general disruption. But they were safe protests nevertheless because there was definite structure and purpose to them.

"White Fang protests" unfortunately meant a lack of structure and purpose. Their goal was consistently disruption, but the protesters would never admit to this fact, instead claiming that they were fighting for wage increases or better working conditions for the Faunus. While these were admirable sentiments to be sure, they were outright lies from the mouths of the crowd and Blake knew this for fact. They wanted to become White Fang members but did not want to accept the rigidity and ferocity required of the organization. They were imposters at their most basic level and were even more misguided than the organization itself. The White Fang was destructive, yes, but such was their intent. These were people who unwittingly harmed the Faunus cause and discredited the validity of the already successful styles of protests for Faunus Rights. Truthfully, it should not be beaten around the bush to say that these protesters—rather, agitators to use Blake's intended descriptor—deserved no sympathy or alliance.

So it is to say that this present protest, the source of the cantankerous roar from beyond the obscuring corner, was neither run by the White Fang nor exclusively dedicated to the Faunus Rights movement. Instead, it was one of the tentative riots which were unduly named "White Fang protests" and shall be referenced as such throughout the course of this tale, despite the false moniker.

They were an angry bunch, excluding to even their own kind if political beliefs did not perfectly align, and there were many. A mélange of pickets and banners and streamers and slogans all guided by furious drive swarmed one of the city's nearby arterial streets as would an army of ants tend to do (with no flippancy to chosen diction in this regard). Myriad defining characteristics covered their bodies from ears to tails to horns and even wings on a scarce few, yet the constant was of their countenances, all sporting scowls and contorting to personally offended screams and jeers to anyone who might observe.

They shouted only propaganda, never their cause. Roars of "Remember Menagerie," "Bite the hand," and "Take back what you stole" echoed through the paths of the city's layout. Further chants were repeated too far away for any coherency, but Blake knew the cadences by heart. They were all under the influence of the White Fang's word yet were not bound to obedience or order. They used these slogans as though their repetitions would combat an idea when the propaganda had been designed only to indoctrinate and motivate. And as they wore their white t-shirts in homage to the organization, they proved themselves wrong.

"Blake?" Yang would ask, standing beside her partner as they watched the impenetrable flow of crowd members pass them by. Because Blake's ears were still unbound and because she did not carry the bow which had kept her from this specific situation before, her ears folded back, flush against her head, so to appear human beside her human girlfriend. "Do you have any idea what this is about?"

The young Faunus held a look of fear—not one of petrification or anxiety, but rudimentary uncertainty which plagues all in times when the imposing is met. She simply stared at the crowd, watching them march and listening to them shout not ten feet away. Blake shuddered and all but whispered her reply of "It's a White Fang protest."

Upon uttering these words, a wave of displeasure washed over her. It had been her intent in running away from the organization to avoid this sort of situation. She could argue against the White Fang itself and even fight them openly, but these were civilians who were unmoving in their positions. Moreover, these were a people so lost in what to do that the only thing they know how to do as a collective was fight. Argument would be met with argument and combat would simply be criminal since they were unarmed.

"White Fang? But where are their masks? What about their weapons?" asked Yang.

Blake continued her whisper, knowing that amongst the crowd there was bound to be another with enhanced hearing. "It's a technical term—an inside joke from the White Fang."

"Well, this doesn't seem funny! They're blocking my bike!"

The crowd of indefatigable size obstructed the intersection which the couple had intended to cross. How they had not heard this prior to their excursion into the music store was uncertain, but the crowd was there now to the chagrin of both the blonde and the blaring traffic on all sides of this protest.

The goal now was of avoidance, of staying away from this crowd and out of their sight. Unfortunately, their current position opposed this concept, leading to Blake's question. "Yang, is there any way we can walk to the restaurant?"

"Yeah," the blonde responded with no small amount upset. "That was kinda the point. We're over here and the bike's over there, and you know what else is over there? The restaurant."

She was annoyed, very much so in fact, but not angry. There was a calm to her upset, as though she were aware of the relative unimportance of dinner. It was likely she understood the severity of this situation with her occasional glances to her furrow-browed partner. However, she would not be one to forfeit a date due to perceived inconvenience (which was instead realistic danger). Their goal, Blake now understood, should be of retreat. As such, she countered her partner's indignity by saying, "Yang, we need to leave. We need to get away from this protest and come back when they're gone."

Yang sighed. "It's fine. We can just wade through them, right? I mean, I don't see the end to this thing and we don't have much to do if we want to wait. And besides, if we come back later, we might not be able to get a table at the restaurant. Pushing through can't be that difficult."

"Yang, no," Blake insisted, panic quietly evident in her tone. "If they see me, they will surround us. If they see you with me, they might pull us apart."

"Yeah, but that's what these are for!" She quickly extended and retracted one of her gauntlets, making a show of its presence.

"No, we are not fighting them."

"Okay, fine. Calm down." With Blake's insistence, the Faunus' tone had grown sharp, causing her partner's recoil. However, Blake could not feel regret for this shift. Her intent was not to keep Yang's spirits aloft, but instead simply to keep her safe. Yang's ideas, unfortunately, were contradictory to her partner's efforts. "Are you sure we can't just walk through?"

"I'm positive. Don't you hear what they're saying about humans? They want nothing to do with you, and if we walk through them, they will undoubtedly turn hostile."

"Blake, I think you're overthinking this."

"I'm not," Blake pressed, focusing her frown on her partner. "I've seen this type of protest before and participated in a few myself. They aren't the type of people who will let you walk through. If you go near them, they will expect you to join their cause, but if you aren't a Faunus, they will throw you out."

"Then how are we going to get to the restaurant?" The question was rhetorical in nature and served only to pinpoint the blonde's motive. "We had this whole thing planned out and our date was going great, and then these guys showed up. Now, I'm fine with the whole equality thing—honestly, you're a better person than I'll ever be—but I'm not about to stand around and let our date fizzle out just because we shouldn't move through them. We have as much a right to this road as they do, and if we can push through, then what's the big deal? Sure, it'd probably be wrong to get in the way of them while they're doing their thing, but it's also wrong of them to get in our way. I say we push through."

Blake could not help gawk at the absurdity of this idea. Usually, she was fine with her partner's plans and the miniscule slant of irrationality they held, but this was simply unreasonable. "Yang, the ends do not justify the means. If we push through, we would only be placing ourselves in harm's way. Though the crowd may seem large, it's not infinite and will pass quickly. I'd imagine it will take at most twenty minutes. We could go back into the music store and look around a bit longer or just walk for a while, but pushing through would only upset them further. Yang, we really do need to leave them be and return when it's convenient."

Yang had a pensive expression about herself, one of a lowered frown and focused gaze. It should not take much thought to come to this decision, Blake believed, but all parties involved were the stubborn types. She believed that Yang was trying to will herself into accepting this minor inconvenience and was having a difficult time.

But perhaps this decision seemed simple only because Blake knew the crowd and what it stood for. Yang had no experience with these sorts of protests and worked only off of her experience with people and emotional reactions. The decision was simple for Blake because she only wanted to see Yang safe. She was a strong girl indeed and could probably face the verbal abuse of the crowd and come out unscathed, but Blake did not want her to go through that regardless. She had seen the way these people could treat outsiders and it was chilling. For such a warm force to brave the darkness of this crowd would be foolish and something Blake wished to prevent. As Yang had protected her, Blake would protect in kind.

In a matter of moments, where the noise of the crowd seemed to grow louder still and as its center reached the intersection which the two stood before, Yang came to her unfortunate conclusion. With a sigh, she said, "Blake, I'm sorry, it's just…It doesn't make sense to me. If you want to wait for them to pass, that's fine, but I'm gonna go get us a table before the restaurant gets too crowded. I'll come find you when I get us on the list, but I can't wait here knowing that our date's gonna end badly."

"But we'd only have to wait twenty minutes!"

"Listen," Yang said with a frown, "sometimes you just need to be aggressive about what you want. You can't always wait around for the opportunity to pop up or for it to come to you. You know that and they know that—that's how you asked me out, right? It really is getting late and if we wait twenty minutes, we won't be guaranteed a seat. It's not a super popular place we're going to, but it's still going to be packed.

"Remember how Weiss had to throw her name around when we tried to get a seat at Flaherty's? We weren't going to be able to eat there unless we had a plan. I don't have what she has, so I can't go in and throw my name around. I have to be aggressive, Blake, and get on that list before everyone else decides to. And I'm not going to let this go because this is our date—_your_ date—and it's not going to go wrong on my watch. So, if you want to wait it out, that's fine, but I'm getting us on that list." The blonde gave an apologetic frown before releasing her girlfriend's hand. "I'm sorry, Blake."

She walked towards the crowd, bearing no hesitation or fear in her steps. Blake could not see her eyes, but she knew that there was confidence burning in them as there had always been. Yang was a walking definition of warmth and conviction and saddened her partner upon her leave. Perhaps it was because of this sadness which trumped the difficulty told by memory that Blake called for Yang to wait. The blonde turned and her partner said, "I'll come with you."

"Are you sure? What about all that stuff you said about this being dangerous?"

"Well, if you're not going to pay attention to that, why should I?" Blake sighed, releasing her bitter intention. "I'm sorry, Yang. I just don't want to see you get hurt, and if you go into that crowd alone, I can't make sure of that. You're my partner and I promised that you'd never be alone. So, if you must do this, at least let me help."

Yang strode back to her partner and immediately wrapped the Faunus in a strong hug, drawing Blake into the leather of her jacket and easing somewhat the tensions between them. "Don't feel pressured into doing anything you don't want to. If waiting means that much to you, then find someplace to hide out and we'll meet up in twenty minutes. But if you want to come, you'd be more than welcome."

The shorter of the two clutched her partner's form, knowing that there was a very high likelihood that this attempt could go awry. It was doubtful either would be hurt, but Blake simply needed to let Yang know that she would be by her side. "This isn't something I can let you do alone, so I'm with you. But I need you to follow my directions exactly, or else we might not make it to the restaurant in time."

"All right, sounds like a plan. What do I need to do?"

Blake took a composing breath, motivating herself into accepting the challenge before her, and rested her head against Yang's chest, hearing the elevated heartbeat caused by excitement. "We won't be able to show any affection for each other in any small way—no smiles, no laughs, no conversation at all—but we need to stay connected to one another by holding hands—that way, we won't be separated. We're going to move with the crowd as we cross the street and will more than likely find ourselves a ways away from our intended destination. But whatever we do, we can't disrupt this protest or they will all turn on us. That's simply how they are."

"All right. So, we'll just act natural, like we're one of them?"

"Yes," Blake said but knew that this would never be achieved with her Faunus traits still on display.

"Okay." With this, Yang lowered her head and kissed the spot between her partner's upper ears and Blake could feel her smirk afterwards. "You know, I'm actually getting a little antsy about this whole thing. You're making it seem like they're gonna attack us." It was a distinct possibility, but Blake chose not to worry her partner any further. Eventually, Yang would pull away and so too Blake before the former asked, "Are you ready to do this?"

The answer was no, but Blake nodded regardless. They found each other's hands, gripped tightly, and began to move towards the cacophonous mass.

Slowly—so slowly that time seemed to crawl to a mere trickle—the two made their way through the crowd, parallel at first to their opposition, but gradually they would intersect. There had been a split second where Yang had attempted to take in the faces of those surrounding, curiosity unfortunately getting the better of her. Fortunately, Blake was able to suppress this with a warning squeeze to her hand. The crowd members were Faunus and hostile ones at that, not amusing sights in the least. Shoulders were bumped, elbows incidentally thrown, and over-enthused cries yelled which disturbed the hearing of the young Faunus. But she would persevere and brave this crowd for the force that had made this feat possible.

The act of moving through this crowd and across the street which could not have been more than fifty feet wide was laborious and hair-raising. Many amongst the crowd chose to remain silent, keeping their quiet fury in the form of glares focused on a distant goal. As such, this was the expression Blake adorned and the one she hoped Yang would mimic without being cued. As they pushed through and with the crowd, many openings which had not previously existed were created between the grumbling protesters with no expression of apology.

Those who chanted their chants chanted louder and with greater fervor, screaming collectively the all-too-familiar "Your sins are our lives!"—a stance coined by that orator Blake had failed to defend in the southern reaches of the kingdom years ago. To her, this crowd was now evidently liable to turn hostile at even the slightest of uncertainties, and she was in the middle of it all with Yang in hand.

For the most part, their travel had gone unrestricted, excluding the times where the aggression—or, rather, assertiveness—Yang had spoken of was called upon to push through more obstinate groups. For every foot gained in crossing the road, five more were added laterally. Though this might seem a frustrating ratio, the fact that progress was being made at all made Blake all the calmer.

But this calm would eventually leave her and it would leave her quickly. Such was the effect of a misstep, a flummox, a slip of emotion, and a twitch of a telling ear. Upon hearing the strained grunt of her partner who had run into an unaware protester, Blake's instinctive worry took hold and caused her to suddenly look behind, catching the attention of those around her and proving that a bond was shared between herself and Yang.

The crowd stopped. Rather, the surrounding portion of the crowd came to a bewildered halt while those ahead continued and those behind slowed. Yet to the perspective of Blake, it seemed as though this entire city now turned on her with immediate hatred burning in their eyes. For all intents and purposes, this could be said to be the case, for there were hundreds of these people glaring at her—thousands, millions! She could not be sure of the count. All she knew was that this stomping, chanting group grew nearer, pulling the thread of the sweater Yang's confidence had knitted and exposing the young Faunus to the cold of her past made present. They grew louder to her unfolded ears and battered through the barricade of personal space, drowning her in the sea of failure which she, herself, imagined. She had been doing so well! Now she was paralyzed by her own cowardice as she scanned the uncertain looks of those around her.

No one spoke, not yet. A circle had formed around the two and stared at the girls while Yang stared at Blake. A squeeze of the hand brought the girl in black out of her shadows and into the harsh light of reality. She was met with frowns on all sides, hesitant expressions from the thirty or so immediate crowd members and a caring look from the golden girl, one unmoved by the stares around her. Blake would look back to her, fear in her eyes and a frown of her own as she waited for the inevitable attack.

"You aren't one of us," a man from the crowd said slowly, taking his time with his words. Blake tried to locate the noise's source but found only the immediate circle. The crowd itself would speak to her with many voices chiming in when a different perspective was deemed necessary. "Who are you and what are you doing here?"

There was a brief pause, short enough for the crowd to understand that the question had been heard but long enough that an obvious hesitance had settled over the two. Blake would not speak—rather, could not speak due to the number of people that now surrounded her. Yang seemed to pick up on this fact and spoke for her, facing the crowd with as sunny a grin as she could fake. "Sorry, we're just passing through. We're kind of in a hurry and need to get home."

"He asked who you are," said another voice.

"Uh, we're just a couple huntresses—a couple_ of_ huntresses—from Beacon."

"Names," the crowd demanded.

At this, Yang's smile fell away. "Why does it matter?"

A murmur of discontent arose from the masses, proving that uncertainty ran rampant among these people and that debate as to what they would do was occurring. A feminine voice spoke up, distrust evident in her tone. "Because you interrupted us. Because you don't have any manners. Because we don't know yet if we can just let you go."

"But what's a name got to do with that?" This was defensive and rightfully so. The crowd doubtfully saw the slight squeeze of the hand Yang gave to her partner, but Blake sure enough noticed its effects. The young Faunus was drawn from her paralyzing fear by the force that had so often protected her in this way. Although, it is not to say that her fear was entirely lost.

There was a contemplative pause, as though the group itself was silently coordinating and reaching a consensus. Eventually, the voice that spoke first spoke again. "What are your traits?"

"My what?" Yang's question, as genuine as it was, caused Blake's breath to catch in her throat. This was a trial set by the crowd and the blonde had just failed. If ever there was a moment when the crowd might attack, this would be it.

A collective scowl crossed the crowd's expression. "Are you a Faunus or are you a human?"

"I'm uh…" There was no right answer Yang could give. "I'm a Faunus…?" But there was certainly a wrong answer.

Suddenly, the scowls sharpened and the crowd grew visibly restless. "You are a liar like every other human," the voice claimed. Grunts of affirmation chorused from the surrounding mob, making Yang's expression still yet warier and Blake's more quietly afraid. "So, why are you here, then, liar?"

"We're just passing through, trying to get home." This was the truth, but Blake knew that these were the type of people who would not listen to any truth but their own.

Upon hearing this, the crowd closed ranks, eliminating whatever empty space was left between them and preventing the girls' escape. A different voice, another Faunus, spoke. "You just want to pass through and step all over our cause? How considerate."

It was a delayed response, but now the crowd was finally turning on the partnership. It was as Blake had seen before: these zealots noticed a hint of instability and would attack it without consideration of the opposing viewpoint. In many ways, these people were like the White Fang with their credos and fervor, but they lacked restraint and paradoxically enterprise as well. They could argue their positions with perhaps even greater energy than the White Fang itself, but they would never fight in the same way—protests were as far as they would go, lobbying for change rather than proving their worth like so many on Remnant did. But even still, these protests were nothing to laugh at, and it is such the reason why Blake could not keep a composed state of mind.

There was an uneasy intensity which racked Blake's nerves, like that of an uncomfortable fire burning too close to the skin with all its blinding shine and smothering smoke. It was an inability to breathe—not caused by the physical laboriousness of the action, but by the knowledge that if she were to breathe, she would be scrutinized by all around her. There were the jarring memories, of course, but the present converged on her position from all sides and inspired a jittery feeling. She was, without consent, being thrown into a mission of crowd control and protection, and though the latter was tolerable because of who was being protected, the former had been her historic anxiety.

"Look," Yang said, an edge of impatience serrating her word, "we're not trying to cause any trouble, all right? We're just trying to pass by and you guys just happened to be in the way. I'm sorry if we're causing you trouble, and we'll get out of your hair as soon as possible, but there's no need to fight with us."

From far back in the crowd which had altogether come to a halt and formed around the two, a Faunus shouted, "That's what we've been saying for years!" This was met with a few cheers.

Another voice spoke up, this one from the immediate circle. "You aren't sorry, liar. You humans never are, never will be. You don't understand the meaning of 'sorry.' Sorry's having to go into a job interview and apologizing for having 'big, stupid rabbit ears' and meaning it. Sorry's having to go all the way through school and hating yourself the entire time for the way you were born because it made you an obvious target. Sorry's knowing that all your human friends you thought you had were only around because they felt bad for you and knowing that you were wasting their time all along. You humans don't get that—you don't get 'Sorry.'"

Yang sighed. "Hey, I'm sorry you've had a rough time—"

"Stop using that word!" someone snarled. "It means you understand what's going on, and you don't, human. You couldn't possibly understand our 'rough time.'"

"Okay, fine. Whatever. Just let us go and we'll never see each other again. Does that sound like a plan?"

"Oh, I know you would like that, human. You'll be able to sleep well tonight, not thinking about anything but what a bright future you'll have without us bothering you."

"All right," Yang began, eyes fringing upon their scarlet hue, "can we stop it with the name-calling?"

"Would you rather we called you something you're not, human? You are a human, aren't you?" This argument was continued by another amongst the group. "And besides, your kind's been spitting the word 'Faunus' at us for years. If we can take it, it's not like you can't handle a little name-calling." The previous speaker then sneered, "Or maybe that _is_ what's going on. Maybe Beacon doesn't train warriors, after all. They just give guns to kids and let them run amok and go on their adventures. Maybe we shouldn't call her human, but kid—or better yet, little girl. That's all you are, human: an entitled, bratty little girl given a gun so that she can be even more reckless. Did I get that right?"

It was at this point that Yang's patience had reached its breaking point. "You really don't have any idea of what you're talking about."

"No, we do. We've all seen it before. It's the same thing over and over again with you humans. You think that just because you outnumber us, it's okay stomp on everything we hold dear and take away any chances of us taking it back. But when we do the same to you, it's suddenly wrong, suddenly criminal. No, little liar girl, I do know what I'm talking about. I doubt you could even comprehend the meaning of hardship with your pampered life here. You know nothing of loss like we've suffered."

"Really, now?" Yang asked with a plainly disinterested expression.

Blake wanted to reach out, to help her partner who was taking the brunt of an assault that should have been the young Faunus' alone, and even still the blonde was inviting more offense. They were wrong and Blake wished to speak out against all of this, but she was trapped in her own mind by the sounds of thunder and stomping and gurgling coughs that strained the final breaths of so many she had not been around to lead. And yet she watched this display, mortified for her girlfriend as the crowd grew angrier.

But at the same time, as Yang drew the disdain of her aggressors, a fleeting sensation of opposition came to the young Faunus' mind, not against the protesters, but against the blonde. But it was a fleeting notion, after all, and not one to be minded when a struggle was occurring before her.

"And what's this?" the crowd asked. "Who's she and why is she with you?"

They were referring to Blake. For all her care placed on Yang and the comfort returned in kind, the young Faunus would still recoil instinctively at attention turned her way by such a large group. The glares now focused on her, and in her haze, she could only see these as expressions of betrayal, as though she had forsaken them somehow by standing beside Yang. Although she was strong in her convictions, her base of confidence was shaken and thus caused her immobility.

"She's none of your business. Back off." Whether Yang's involvement was a blessing or curse in this instance was yet to be seen, but that oppositional sensation returned briefly to her partner's mind.

"She _is_ our business. She's Faunus and we are family. If we allow her to stand beside you, then it would be the same as throwing our child to the wolves—to the _animals_." The crowd then turned its focus on the girl in black, treating her as though she were a lost toddler holding hands with a stranger. "What is your name, child? Why are you with this human?"

"Hey! I said back off! We aren't interested in getting to know you."

Yang did not receive so much as a glance. "We know what you said, human, but like all your other words, they mean nothing." They never took their gaze off of Blake. "Now, please, young one, tell us your name. We're on your side and don't want to see you harmed."

Upon her silence, another voice was raised from the crowd. "She won't speak! The human has her scared into submission!"

"No! Don't be a fool! She's been harmed. The humans tortured her into silence!"

"Do you see any marks?" a third Faunus asked. "Of course she hasn't been harmed! There's something deeper going on here. Her eyes scream fear and her face says doubt, but she's still standing in front of us. She's calling for help!" A concurring row was raised among the crowd, amounting to a near roar like the animals they so vilified but often acted as. If one merit could be permitted to the White Fang despite all its evil, it would be that they never played with their food.

"You're the ones scaring her!" Yang shouted, somehow overpowering and silencing the surrounding thousands. She did not say anything immediately after, being about as stunned as Blake was that this group could be affected in such a way, but if this silence were to linger, weakness would be shown and Yang seemed to understand. "We were just trying to get home and you guys had to make a big fuss about it. She doesn't like crowds, never has. I was making sure she was all right and you all had to butt in and make us feel bad. You aren't her family. She already has a family and I'm part of it."

"Now _you_ don't know what you're talking about, little girl. Talk about hypocrisy!" Yang released a low growl as the heat radiating off of her climbed in short bursts. "Her family is with the Faunus—she was born that way, not human, and she should have nothing to do with you. And the White Fang is her family, too. You said that you were trying to protect her when we 'butted in,' but the way I see it, we're saving her from you. You don't know anything about the world, about the pain we have to endure. Have you ever been locked in a cage and starved to the point of giving in before being fed _just_ the right amount of food to keep you alive? That's what she looks to be feeling right now and what we had to go through. The White Fang's her family now and we'll make sure she never has to suffer again."

They were liars, delusional libelers borne of Apocrypha and insistent of change. They were not the White Fang and never would be. They were as cowardly as Blake but as baseless as the organization's leadership. They were the true children with guns, slinging their slanderous virtues every which way and caring not for collateral damage. With each word they spat and every consensus they reached, they were furthering the detrimental cause of their savior organization—their "family." This was not a fury on Blake's part forged by offense or the desire to correct, but a defensive instinct that could rival Yang's own. She had been right, the blonde; Yang was family, regardless of biology.

The young Faunus' hands balled into fists, straining her knuckles white, as her listless gaze hardened and galvanized into a wholly outraged glare focused on the pavement below. Slowly, she would move this expression toward an inconsequential member of this crowd, a deer Faunus with antlers displayed proudly, and she would see him shake his head in pity—not out of sorrow for Blake's anguish, but sorrow for the fact that her anguish still existed despite him trying to help. A scowl burned across Blake's features as an animalistic growl rumbled in the back of her throat. Just as that man attempted to speak, she cut him off with a shout of "You are _not_ the White Fang!"

This shout was not one that could be dealt to either Weiss in her ignorance or Yang in any state. Rather, this shout which roared from the reserved Faunus was that of the years of pain she had suffered in the search for even the slightest glimpse of hope that the White Fang's efforts were for a just cause. This was the shout that had been chained for ten years and now it broke free, unleashing its wrath upon these quisling monsters.

The man with the antlers spoke again, attempting to calm the young Faunus. "No, no. We are. We've worked for Faunus Rights for years and we've all been under the same flag. You can trust us."

"I've seen the White Fang, and you're nothing more than cowards!" A few discontented murmurs could be heard amongst the crowd, but Blake could not care. They would likely turn on her, too, but so had the organization. If she could live with her own horrors, their offense would mean nothing in comparison. "You speak about Faunus Rights while trying to split away from humanity. You're running away from your problems, away from equality. You want segregation. You want stereotypes. You want nothing to do with Faunus Rights, except you lie and say you are fighting for Faunus everywhere."

"We are!" the crowd shouted back. "Their sins are our lives and if we can't get rid of the humans, then we have to get away from them. We can't live under oppression forever, and if escape is the only way to make sure we can live our lives, then that's what we'll do."

"And you'll drag the entire Faunus race with you? Menagerie was destroyed over a century ago! There's been great progress in the Faunus Rights movement and we are able to find jobs and families alongside humanity. No one's being caged or starved! Those are just lies the White Fang's been feeding you."

"We are the White Fang!"

"_I_ was White Fang, and I can tell you with no doubt in my mind that whatever _this_ is would not be tolerated. You don't care about anonymity, about goals, you only care about making your voice heard and making those around you cave to your ideals." Though Blake could not see it, her partner turned to her with an awestruck expression, one ever so slightly proud but overall dumbfounded as she watched the regularly quiet girl fight for her beliefs and stand her ground. "The White Fang is not family, it never has been. You think it's some charitable group that will save you from all your problems and free the Faunus.

"But they're not! They're as much a military as the one Atlas holds, and they are much more aggressive. They have buildings filled with Faunus who make up the propaganda that you're using. They steal information, falsify documents, stage riots against the Faunus, and outright lie about the information they acquire. And then you state their results as fact!"

"You lie," the antlered man said.

Blake growled, "And you'll jump at the opportunity to call someone else a liar when their perspective differs from yours. I know they lie about the information they spread—that was my job when I was with them! If you can't accept that they aren't wrong even once, then you're as blind as I was. They don't fight for Faunus Rights, they fight to conquer humanity. And if you think that they care about any of you marching up and down the biggest city in the world, you're mistaken. They don't care. They only care about keeping themselves alive. Truthfully, your movement is somewhat of a joke in the organization. They call you spineless! And coming from them, that's low."

"You don't know anything about the White Fang!" a particularly zealous member of the crowd screeched, forcing her way through the vanguard and facing Blake immediately with a personally offended expression. "My husband fought for years trying to make the lives of Faunus matter. He was killed in a protest just like this one in Mistral two years ago by a human! A human like the little liar girl beside you! You can't say the White Fang is trying to conquer humans; humans are trying to conquer us!"

An idea crossed Blake's mind of informing the woman to the fact that many a White Fang member would forsake their homefront relationships through staged deaths or denouncements in order to fan the flames of unrest. But she would not tell her this for many reasons, with the chief amongst these being that despite their collective ignorance, they were confused individuals searching for what was right. They were like Blake a decade ago.

But the reason why Blake did not respond in any way immediately was due to her partner's intervention. "What are you talking about?" Yang asked. "Humans aren't trying to conquer you. Yeah, there are a few bullies left around, but most people aren't like that anymore. I can't really speak for all of you, but from what I've seen, Vale's a pretty accepting place. And we've had to fight the White Fang before—you know, with guns and stuff—because they weren't accepting like you're saying they are. They knocked a hole in the train system and let a bunch of Grimm attack the city. That doesn't sound like something family would do."

"Maybe they did that on purpose," a new crowd member conjectured. "Maybe that was their way of fighting back against the humans."

"Are you kidding me?"

Blake took over for her girlfriend. "The Grimm can't be controlled; they can't even be aimed in a certain direction. They will attack any source of fear and would have destroyed Vale if it weren't for the city's defense by multiple hunter teams—hunter teams which included human-Faunus partnerships."

The crowd was silent.

"That was equality in action!" Blake exclaimed. "That was the combined efforts of humans and Faunus working toward a similar goal. We saved the city and nobody knew about it after the fact because of how well we worked together."

"Yeah," Yang added, "and the White Fang was nowhere to be seen the entire time. They sent trains loaded with bombs underneath downtown so that they could let the Grimm out, and they didn't bother cleaning up the mess when it got out of hand."

"If they wanted to conquer humanity, they would have set an offensive against it, not let the Grimm do their work for them. The White Fang is _very _direct about their military actions and will only resort to subterfuge if the result might ruin their reputation among the Faunus."

Another crowd member interjected, "But the White Fang doesn't actually fight! They protest."

"Yeah? Then what about all those guns they pointed at us? What about the time they kidnapped my little sister?"

"That wasn't them!"

"If that wasn't the White Fang, then you aren't the White Fang, either," Blake said. "They wore their emblems, their masks, and they were all Faunus fighting to destroy humanity! They followed every rule I was taught when I was with them and they utilized the same command structure I was familiar with. They hated humans, wore white, and fought in the name of the Faunus. If that wasn't the White Fang, then you certainly aren't."

The crowd was silent, perhaps shocked into speechlessness, but more than likely caught without a further basis for argument. Blake was proud—winded and exhausted, but proud nonetheless. An encouraging smile was sent her way from the sunny blonde.

Unfortunately, she knew that reciprocating this would be ill-advised since doing so would only contradict the aforementioned oppositional sentiment that she held for some reason against Yang. But, of course, they were not out of this fight yet, for the crowd's ranks had not softened and no exit could be seen. Despite her best intentions, this situation had devolved into nothing but a shouting match, and somehow she was winning. Yet no victorious glory reached her mind due to the deplorable fact that aggressing these civilians was wrong and Yang was the cause of this.

She tried not to blame Yang, she truly did, but every second that time lent her to think her own thoughts lead to her belief that this situation would not have occurred if not for the blonde's insistence. Yang had been the one to argue for immediacy, push into the crowd, and collide with a crowd member, thus starting this entire argument. There was no hostility that welled within Blake's mind, simply that same underlying fear which had been with her for most of her life.

The next utterance of the crowd would be, somehow, more frustrating than all those previous. Wrongful beliefs on ethicality and dubious usage of hateful propaganda were major matters which should evoke a vague sense of outrage, but it was the inclusion of a relatively minor matter which finally shattered the thin calm that still rested between the partnership and the crowd.

"It really is a shame that the human has taken hold of your heart and corrupted you so badly."

In unison, the partnership would respectively shout, "What are you talking about?" and "Are you crazy?"

"It's not natural, the relationship you two hold. It's perverse, wrong. A Faunus should be only with another Faunus. That way, we can ensure that more of us grow every day to achieve the equality that we deserve. With you sleeping with the enemy, you've already surrendered our fight for us. You've given up every right you had as a member of the White Fang so that you could assimilate with the humans. You've been corrupted by them and they've indoctrinated you with their lies about us. You don't have a right to speak for the Faunus any longer."

"Would you rather live in a world of hate or a world of peace?" Blake asked.

"I would live in a world of peace, huntress."

The addition of the lattermost word nearly dissuaded Blake from continuing, being that their beliefs on who she was were now cemented and unchangeable. However, they could not get away with speaking about Yang like that, no matter how brazen the blonde had been. "Then why do you continue to fight against humanity? Other Faunus Rights groups are trying to assimilate and are making the lives of many Faunus better. You're fighting for an organization that doesn't care about the lives of the Faunus any longer. They want the same thing the Grimm want."

"You don't know what you're talking about, child." Though it did not occur, it seemed as though the crowd stepped nearer. "You've been blinded by human propaganda and your allegiance belongs to humanity now. Of course you're going to defend them. Your perverted heart has been stolen and your mind has been addled. Now you're only a husk of a Faunus. You can't speak of the White Fang anymore. They've changed for the better—they've changed things for the better. They're the reason why Menagerie was destroyed and why we're even allowed jobs in the first place. If it wasn't for them, then there wouldn't be a Faunus Rights movement."

"But they aren't the Faunus Rights movement, not anymore," Blake argued. "The leadership of ten, twenty years ago could hold that title, but not those in power now. The White Fang's current leadership wants to see Remnant burn and the Faunus be the only people that survive."

"That's the way it should be." Another voice said this, speaking matter-of-factly. "After all, we are the superior species."

Blake recoiled at the absurdity of this claim. It was wholly unwarranted. "We're all the same! The only differences we have are our traits and night vision."

"Those are what make us superior. It's the basic rule of survival that if a species cannot adapt, it will die."

"Wait," interrupted Yang. "You're saying that just because humans can't see in the dark, we deserve to die?"

"Don't twist our words—"

"I'm not twisting your words; they're already twisted as it is. You're saying because I'm not up to your standards and because I wasn't born as a Faunus, I'm going to die. And let me catch you there before you say something like, 'Now you know what our pain is like.' I don't know your struggles—really, I don't even think much of what you're saying makes sense—but no one deserves to be told they're lesser. Blake's been through that for years and some of the effects might not ever come undone, but she doesn't have to live with that anymore now that she left the White Fang."

As caring as her words were, Yang's argument was reprehensible in this current instance. Blake believed the blonde was picking a fight with the protesters and that this would lead to combat with unarmed civilians. And for Yang to become defensive was for her to promise combat. Such was her threat to Weiss regarding the matter of Ruby and as well to Blake regarding her parents if they did not approve of their relationship. This was what the White Fang had resorted to, and for this, Blake turned a condemning glare on her partner.

Unfortunately, this look went unseen by the blonde. "And if anyone knows about White Fang stuff, it's her. She was around when it all hit the fan and got out alive. She knows what went wrong and when it went wrong, and that's more than any of you can say for yourselves. And if she wants to leave the White Fang behind to hang out with humans, that's her call, not yours."

Yang moved from her position beside the young Faunus and stepped to the one who had argued most recently. She was only a few feet from where he stood and was nearly half a foot shorter, but her expression of annoyance did not waver in the least. "And if any of you have a problem with who she dates or who she stands beside in battle, you'll bring that up with me." She glared a scarlet glare which seemed to catch the Faunus off-guard. "I didn't steal her heart. She stole mine. If you've got a problem with that, leave her out of this and pick on me instead."

Perhaps Yang expected some reaction of fear and an admittance to leave, but Blake knew that this would never be the case. She continued to glare at her partner. These were not people to be aggressive toward, for when cornered, they were liable to gain courage and fight in a similar way that their beloved White Fang did. There had been no forward progress in convincing these people and there would not be any in the foreseeable future. But Yang was combative and defensively aggressive. Such a combination was inherently volatile and Blake did not want to see the explosion. Unfortunately, her assessment of their characters would prove correct and her condemnation would prove wrongly placed.

The man Yang stood before smirked down at her. "You talk like we consider you equal. You don't have any say here, human. She's one of us. She's a Faunus before she's a huntress, a Faunus before she's your plaything, a Faunus before all else. And you're a tyrant who thinks that getting up in someone's face is the way to calm a situation."

"Oh, 'calm' isn't exactly what I was going for."

"If it's a fight you want, you're incredibly outnumbered, wouldn't you say?"

"Yeah, but I could use the practice."

"You'd take us all on just for her?"

"For Blake? I'd take on armies."

"Yang! Enough!" All parties went silent, turning to the source of the shout. The blonde found her partner who scowled with an obvious fury, similar in expression to the protesters. The crowd continued to smirk as Yang lost her confident expression for one of worry. She attempted to ask what was the matter, but before she could get a word out, Blake interrupted. "We are _not_ fighting these people, no matter how obnoxious they are. They've done nothing wrong but insult us. There is no need for bloodshed. That would only further their cause and get us arrested."

"But they were gonna try to take you away!"

Blake shook her head. "They're all talk."

"But they were going to attack!"

"Yang, we aren't soldiers and we certainly aren't murderers. We're not even huntresses yet, but still our enemy should be the Grimm alone. We can't fight these people. They're innocent and unarmed."

"I know, but they were going to take you away."

"They weren't and it shouldn't matter anyways. We don't fight civilians. We attend Beacon so we can learn to protect them, not destroy." This was not Blake reasoning with Yang, but scolding her, ensuring that the past could not repeat itself. "Yang, we are not the White Fang. We will _never_ be the White Fang. Let's just walk away and let them be like we should have done in the first place."

Despite her earlier statement on the necessity for assertiveness and to fight for what was right, Yang lost her scarlet temper at a single glance at Blake's upset. She knew the young Faunus was not one to be offended but on the direst of occasions, and as such, she assumed that Blake was correct. "Blake, I-I'm…You're right. I'm sorry. We shouldn't have done this and I shouldn't have forced you into coming with me. Let's just forget about this and go home."

"You aren't going anywhere," the crowd said. "You cannot leave until we let you."

"You're not going to do anything," Blake sighed.

She figured that their next action would be to argue against this. It had been the pattern for years upon years and there was no reason to believe that her lone intervention would be their breaking point. As such, she looked away from Yang in disappointment and toward their intended destination. They had endeavored only to cross to the other side of the street, and yet so much trouble had been caused by the blonde. Without so much as a thought of hesitation, Blake pushed past the crowd, parting the defiant ranks and creating a berth which Yang could follow.

Faunus would try to grasp her, to keep her in place and bring her back to the darkness of the White Fang, but nothing more than a simple shrug was necessary to disregard them. They were an argumentative group that lacked conviction and were thus pliant. If they were the White Fang, she and Yang would be dead already. If they were a true Faunus Rights movement, none of this would have happened—in fact, it was possible she and Yang would agree with their points if this were the case. But they were neither. They were children who wanted to achieve greatness in their lives but never wanted to accept the responsibility which will always surround any greatness. They could not handle the concept of differing outlooks and they certainly could not handle defeat. They could claim themselves the White Fang all they wanted, Blake thought. Both groups could burn together.

Yang followed close behind, glancing apologetically at everyone around her, understanding now why Blake had been hesitant about heading into this crowd. It is not to say that the blonde was afraid of the mob, but that she was insecure because of what they said. She had always been either revered or feared because of the way she carried herself, but these people talked down to her like she had done something wrong. Her life had been fit to accommodate everyone around her, and now she felt as though she had neglected an entire side of her life for years.

She looked to Blake and the irregular anger that marred her expression. Perhaps Yang truly did not care about the Faunus and only saw Blake as a plaything, as they put it. She had not listened to her partner when she should have, she had argued about a matter she had little understanding of, and she had even threatened to fight thousands of unarmed civilians by herself. And what was worse was that she knew that she would win. Perhaps she was a child with a gun. There were definitely unintended targets hurt by her aggression, and Blake was one of them. Perhaps aggression wasn't the answer. Understanding had done well in the past.

In a matter of minutes, the crowd had been passed through and the opposite side of the street was found, leaving the aggressors at the partnership's backs like but a shallow memory. There would be no further admission of this conflict in the present moment, both due to upset and prioritized emotion. The blonde would continue to frown and her girlfriend to glower at some point upon the sidewalk before her.

While it may seem as though the crowd itself would be the cause of this present anger welling within the young Faunus, the deepest rooted concerns of the girl in black would not be struck for some time to come. The protest had, of course, been the starting point from which this upset was allowed, but it was not the reason why Blake was as frustrated as she was. Truthfully, she did not know why she was acting this way. Perhaps it was the teenage angst that plagues one from time to time in those years or perhaps it was something founded in yet inscrutable logic, but whatever the case, the crowd had instilled irrationality from which they were characterized.

To do away with any ambiguity, it should be said that a fledgling frustration existed specifically due to Yang and her insistence. Though it cannot be said that any specific part of her interaction with the blonde was to blame for this emotion, the emotion existed nevertheless, and this led to a scornful silence on Blake's part as the two continued down the path planned by them before the encounter with the mob.

Yang heaved a heavy, almost playful sigh as she caught up to her girlfriend's side, apparently unshaken. "So, that was a thing. You know, you were probably right about waiting instead of barging through like we did. Honestly, I think we would have been better off following your plan. Now I'm not sure we'll be able to get a table, anyway." She gave a short laugh and looked over to Blake. Unfortunately, the comment seemed to have gone unnoticed. Blake's brows continued to furrow and her mind still occupied thoughts of withheld reprimand. "Hey, kitten, what's wrong? Did those guys get to you or something?"

No, Blake answered, it was someone else, someone closer. She sighed. She had a right to be angry, she believed, but no right to be rude—curt, perhaps, but not cold. "I just want to go home."

"You don't wanna see if we can still get a table?"

The young Faunus shook her head. "I've lost my appetite. I just…need to go home."

"Yeah, all right. Sure." The attempt at restorative positivity had failed the blonde, and now she frowned again. "Hey, uh, if I said anything back there that was, you know, offensive or anything, I didn't mean it. I…I'm sorry, Blake."

Again, she was saying that word—that word the crowd had been unfortunately correct about. Yang didn't know what was going on. The protest did not, either. There were two people on this world who would have known how to deal with this emotion, but their power had been severed by White Fang propaganda and its corruption of a child. Yang, in every other circumstance, would know how to mend a wound like this, but not now, not when the issue concerned her versus the Faunus species. She was a human—a great, loving human, but a human nonetheless. She and Blake were different at the most fundamental level. It was doubtful they would ever truly coexist without fear of the other's kind.

Bumblebee was in sight and Blake did not feel like talking. However, she would because Yang was still dear and because the young Faunus could not yet find what she had done wrong. "Can we please just go home?"

"Yeah," Yang sighed.

There would be no embrace between the two except what was required for Blake to ride behind her partner. And even this was not in the least affectionate. No matter how close the two would sit near one another, there would be an uncertain distance between them all the while. Throughout their journey back to the house on the outskirts of this city, Blake would hold close to her partner, feeling the reassuring aura try to warm her heart and fail. There was something wrong, and she knew it. She could not be certain what it was, but there was something. She had felt the exact same way about the White Fang prior to her discovery of their change. Perhaps Yang was changing, perhaps Blake was changing, perhaps not. Whatever the case, something was wrong and Blake was not immediately ready to forgive. The protest had shaken her.

* * *

As the groan of rising metal shrilled throughout the sisters' garage, the bike and its two passengers entered and came to a halt with an expected rumble and diminishing whine of the engine. With the press of a dashboard button, the garage door began its descent and the two moved to dismount, one quicker than the other.

Blake shook her head, freeing her ears and hair from the helmet and attempting again to distance herself from the festering anger. During the ride home, she could only bring herself to ask why she was as upset as she was. Unfortunately, she never found an answer. This confusion only further upset the young Faunus because introspection had once been a comfort to her. Now it was a wall she could not scale and a wall of thorns at that. There was injustice somewhere to find and misunderstandings aplenty, but Yang had not fired upon the crowd even once. Blake set her helmet on the table against the back wall before moving to the door leading inside. Meanwhile, Yang was still sitting astride her bike, staring fearfully at the returned pain within her partner.

Without any ceremony or look behind, Blake entered the house in her unresolved daze, leaving the door open for her partner and making her way inside.

Yang did not bother following procedure by putting everything where it needed to go. She could afford to be hasty with her belongings this once if it meant ensuring Blake's wellbeing. There was something terribly wrong and she knew it was all her doing even if she did not know exactly what it was that had caused this expression. Blake was not the type to show a cold shoulder. She could get mad at times when her beliefs were tried or her people insulted, but this was something different. This was not as dire as the situation with Weiss in their first semester, but it was obviously important to the young Faunus. As such, Yang placed her helmet atop her seat and chased after her partner.

"Blake?" she yelled as she closed the door behind her. "Blake, is everything all right?"

She received no answer.

At the end of the hall, Blake could be seen entering the kitchen, detouring to a far wall and swiping the sisters' home phone before looking to head to her room. However, before she could, Yang would shout again in her worried tone, "Blake?" At this, the girl in black would pause, standing beneath the door frame leading into the next room. Yang would stop close by, but she lacked the nerve to reach out and hold her partner like she wanted to because she was aware of the tight grip the Faunus held on the phone and the frustration this represented. "Blake?" she asked again in a voice much quieter. "Blake, talk to me. What's wrong?"

The Faunus did not turn to look at her girlfriend but instead emitted a low whisper of a growl. This itself was frustrating to the blonde who knew not how to respond to this sort of emotion. Ruby's upset had always been disappointment or relatively simple sadness, and this was all Yang knew. She, herself, had struggled with remorse and regret, but this left her with no knowledge as to what Blake was feeling in this present moment. There was no word Yang could give to describe Blake's feelings because she did not know what they were. This was the reason behind the blonde's questioning, not simple care (though it was involved significantly), but an attempt at understanding.

The blonde stepped forward. "Blake, it'll all be okay if we just talk about it. What went wrong out there with the protest? Did they say something? Did _I_ say something? Were there just too many people out there at once for you to handle? Tell me, Blake, and we'll work this out. I'm sorry about whatever I said, just _please_ let me help."

All at once, that low growl in the back of Blake's throat became a snarling shout as she turned on her partner, both physically and emotionally. "I don't want your help!" she bellowed. "You won't understand because you _can't_ understand!"

Yang could not help but recoil. Admittedly, this expression was startling as it was altogether unexpected of the reserved Faunus. "Well, I can try."

"And you'll fail!" The amber eyes which once calmed the blonde now frightened her. "You can't understand what went wrong out there because you're not a Faunus! You don't know the White Fang and the things it does to people! It destroys them, cripples them—it takes their minds away and shoves new ones in that want only to cannibalize their own culture. Those people didn't deserve what happened out there.

"But you went ahead and shook the beehive anyway! I said 'Wait' and you said 'Go,' and you _had_ to have your way. You dragged us into trouble without thinking and then you walked out like nothing was wrong. Did you not see what was wrong there? We were walking all over people who were victims of the White Fang—people who had their minds ripped out without their consent! They were trying to fight for what was right, and even though they weren't going about it the right way, they didn't deserve to be threatened. They were unarmed! Defenseless!"

"Well, I thought it was the right thing to do," Yang admitted. "We were having a great time and I thought that if we didn't get a table, it would ruin our date. I was wrong and I know it."

"No, you don't know how wrong you were. We could have let them pass and everything would have been fine."

"Okay, it was poor planning on my part. I was just trying to help."

"Was threatening that man your attempt at helping?"

"Yeah!" Yang said, her voice rising in evident annoyance. "That actually was. Didn't you hear what they said? They were gonna take you away from me. I know they were probably exaggerating, but they threatened us first. And I wasn't just going to sit back and let someone threaten you like that, Blake. You mean too much for me to take chances like that, and even if he wasn't serious about it, I had to treat him like he was."

"But you didn't! You treated him like the White Fang. You treated all of them like the White Fang, saying that you'd fight all of them."

"Just to keep you safe!"

"Just to keep me safe?" asked Blake, bewildered. "I wouldn't think threatening to shoot someone at point-blank range was a way of keeping anyone safe. You were threatening them with physical violence—you were threatening peaceful protesters with physical violence!"

"Yeah, because I assessed the situation and I saw a threat. Don't you remember all the paperwork Goodwitch had us sign so we could be partners? All that legal stuff? We all had to read it."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"I promised to keep you safe no matter what. I said I'd risk my life for you if you were ever in danger, and that's exactly what I did. You were in trouble with those guys and I helped."

"You wouldn't have had to if you didn't insist on walking through them in the first place!"

The blonde threw her arms up in apology. "Again, my bad! I didn't think it'd turn out like that and I was wrong. Still, that doesn't excuse those guys from trying to pull you away from me and insulting us like that."

"Insults, Yang? Really? You cared about the insults?" Blake shook her head in disbelief. "Yang, they were just trying to get under your skin, and you let them. That's not even linked to their affiliation with the White Fang. That was just them being terrible people. And you lowered yourself to their level!"

Yang arched an eyebrow. "Are you calling me a terrible person?"

"I—No, it's not that, I…" The Faunus sighed. "Yang, you responded to verbal abuse with threats of physical violence. That's exactly what the White Fang used to do, and I'm not going to let you lower yourself to their level. You aren't the White Fang and I'm not the White Fang and we aren't going to act like the White Fang. If those people want to be like them, let them. They don't matter to us. They'll be sorted out by the world in due time, not by your gauntlets."

"I wasn't really going to shoot them! I was just pushing them back."

"You could have fooled me! You've always been the type to keep your word, threats and all. If I thought that you were going to shoot him, imagine what he thought—imagine what everyone around him thought! By getting up in his face, you not only made them angrier, you gave the White Fang fire to work off of. They might use you as an example from now on for how terrible humanity is."

"And you think humanity's terrible? Are you trying to say that you're siding with the protesters? Because all I'm hearing right now is how I didn't do anything good back there and only ruined things for an entire race of people."

"Don't make this about yourself! Of course you got us into a bad situation and of course you exacerbated it. Does that make all humans bad? Absolutely not, but you still have to take responsibility for your actions."

"And I did. I knew that if I was going to fight one of them, I was going to fight all of them."

"Do you honestly think fighting solves everything?"

"No, I—" Yang was cut off.

"Then why are you arguing?"

"Because you're arguing with me!" Now Yang was yelling as well, her shout echoing throughout this otherwise uninhabited house in an attempt to overpower her partner's voice. "I get that I did something wrong. I might not understand what it was completely, but I know it was wrong. But ever since we left the crowd, you've been angry with me and I'm just trying to find out why."

Blake hesitated, not having truly an answer to this yet, but she felt the need to fight nevertheless. "I'm angry with you because you tried to act the same way as the White Fang. You tried to attack innocent people! Even if they're misguided, they don't deserve to die."

"But I didn't attack them and I won't even think of doing that anymore." There was a moment's pause between them as Yang tried to will her statement into more of a promise after the fact, but she realized that Blake was still fuming and needed extra assurance. "Blake, I was just trying to help. It wasn't their insults about me that were hurting, it was the insults about you. I wasn't just going to stand around and watch them beat you down. I'm your partner! I'm your girlfriend! If it's anyone's job to have your back, it's me, and I wasn't going to let them hurt you like that."

"Hurt me? They couldn't have hurt me if they tried. I'm desensitized to all of their insults; I've heard every one there is to say. When you spend time with the White Fang, you grow accustomed to that sort of abuse. It stops having the same effect and starts motivating you into taking action, into attacking and changing things. You took their bait and threatened that man and acted like a member of the White Fang."

"And what would you have done if that was me on the line out there?" Yang argued. "Would you have just walked away and let them continue on their protest? Would you just let them be and push away peacefully, not harming anybody at all?"

"You know that's not true. They wouldn't have hurt you, and I did rescue you from them. You already saw what I would have done. I got you away from them."

"Well, that was what I was trying to do for you. They were saying that you were a traitor and that you weren't supposed to be with me. They were attacking you, Blake, and whether or not you care doesn't change the fact that they were. They were going to pull you away and take you with them. Maybe they weren't going to do that, but I didn't know. It sure looked like they were and I wasn't about to let them indoctrinate you again. You aren't with the White Fang anymore. You're with us now, Blake. With family. I was just trying to protect you and make sure you were okay."

The lattermost sentence in this argument sent a jolt of indignation through the mind of Blake Belladonna, finalizing her assumptions as to what was upsetting her. Now she knew, and thus she glared at her partner, unfortunately growling, "I don't need your protection! You've been smothering me ever since I asked you out, and I can't take it anymore! I was fine without your protection for seventeen years and I think I can make do on my own!"

An unintended silence swept the room, leaving both parties speechless at what Blake had said.

A look of sheer horror crossed Yang's countenance, and on Blake's, immediate regret. There were questions to ask, many answers required, but Blake was still coming to terms with the words that had come out of her mouth. Had she said what she thought? Had she said the unthinkable? A noxious feeling welled inside her, paining her stomach and racking her mind as she desperately wondered if this was life or some horrible dream.

Yang's jaw gaped in shock. These were not Blake's words, surely. They must have been somebody else's, perhaps a White Fang propagandist. The kind, nuzzling Blake of ticklish ears and teasing remarks could not possibly say something this rash and sudden. It was wrong, simply wrong, and Yang knew not what to do in response.

Blake was in much the same state with the only difference being that she had the ability still to speak. "I…I…I…" She could not get any further word out past this yet. She regretted what she said, but at the same time, there was truth to it. The line, however, between truth and lie in her own statement was incredibly vague and even more troubling. "Yang, I-I need some time to myself. I'm…Please don't come after me."

At this, the Faunus turned and quickly made her way to her room, withholding tears and a desire to scream as she all but ran down the hall, closed the door, and locked it suddenly.

"Blake…wait." The blonde's words were a mere whisper now, a command to a ghost that had long since passed. She spoke to a person beyond the reach of her voice and beyond her help. "Blake, no." Had she lost? Had she brought an entire army to its knees and still lost? "I'm sorry," she desperately croaked as the room's light dimmed and so too her aura. She watched the place where Blake stood, a position that would be perhaps the closest she could ever get to Blake again. "Blake," she mourned one last time.

* * *

Yang was wrong. The Faunus were not to be walked through or stepped over. They were people just like Yang was and they deserved the same respect. If they were unarmed, they would not be fired upon; it was as simple as that. And if they were to demonstrate peacefully, they would not be met with war.

That was all Yang knew: war. Her life was filled with loss and she could not get away from it. She fought constantly to keep pain at bay, but lacked the ability to eliminate it entirely. She would inflict pain upon others because it had been inflicted upon her and she would do so with no regard to the victims of her assault. She was reckless, brash, everything Weiss claimed her to be, and still she surprised the Faunus who accepted her despite these faults by showing aggression when there should be none. She was turning, changing like the crowd and the White Fang. She would be another partner lost to the seduction of power.

But Blake did not want to believe this. She rationalized the concepts, countered her own arguments with those against Yang, but in the end, she could not accept as truth the notion that the loving blonde was truly as uncontrollable as she seemed. For this, Blake had taken the sisters' phone, not as a means of cutting off the house from the outside world, but instead to call the one person in that world who would understand a young Faunus' plight.

Yet she was not in her right mind and could not bring herself to dial. She sat shaking in her own bed—the bed she had seldom used since that night of the storm—and simply stared at the pale green glow of the screen. Her arms cradled her legs close and her ears drooped deeply as she planned the path her thumb might take over the number pad.

Yang had been there for her in every fight up to this point and had even ventured with the Faunus to Sierra and braved a fear shared between them. She had been kind and caring and treated Blake only as another person, not a member of the White Fang or as a lowly Faunus. But she was a human and harbored institutional sentiments regardless. She would always see Blake as someone different. This was unavoidable and a factor which the crowd despised.

A relationship between a human and a Faunus was unprecedented. The White Fang had evidence that told why the relationships could not work and the crowd seemed aware. Though the statistics were likely apocryphal and falsified, it was still a belief held by many, humans included. It was not about biology or ethics or even conflicting cultures, but about fundamental stigmata toward change and difference. They were different people, Blake and Yang, and always would be. Perhaps a relationship could not occur if their ideals were not aligned on this matter of righteousness.

But Blake did not know this for certain and could not admit her decision as final. There was one person she knew who could give a definite answer concerning a human-Faunus relationship—one who had experienced the trials and knew of the pain. She looked again to the phone, a new resolve drying her tears as she pressed slowly the number that had been lost for many years.

The phone began to ring in her ear and each electronic tone seemed to test her courage, but she knew that this would be the only way to be certain.

It would ring three times more before a silence captured the line. Blake nearly hung up, but a calming voice with an ease about enunciation asked, "Hello?"

"Mom?" was the only word the young Faunus could utter, a choke overtaking her ability speak any further.

"Blake?" Lilian confirmed. "Blake, you don't sound well. Is something wrong?"

As per usual, the older Faunus wasted no time with pleasantries for her daughter, moving only to direct care and assessment. This brought Blake some sense of comfort that someone might understand. "Mom," she said shakily, unable to find the conviction she had used against her partner, "I…I…Something's happened with Yang. I…I don't know what to do and I…I just need to talk to you."

"Would you like me to get your father on the line, as well? If she's hurt you, he may want to have a word with her."

"No, it's not that. It's…We're having a disagreement."

"An argument," corrected Lilian.

Blake was silent.

Her mother sighed, seemingly preparing for the sudden discussion. "It's natural for you two to argue. It's natural for any couple to argue." She paused, listening to the silence Blake maintained. "I assume this was your first?"

"As a couple," Blake answered. "We've fought before, but never like this."

"And it stings?"

Blake could only give a whimper of confirmation.

"What was the cause of this argument?"

"The White Fang…I think. I'm not sure exactly. I just…snapped at her."

Lilian sighed, taking a moment to organize her impending lecture before beginning. "Blake, I know you have an idea as to the extent of the White Fang's indoctrination and I know you've broken out of it for the most part, but you must understand that their claws sank deeper than you might think. I assume that the matter of the White Fang came up in conversation and you had differing viewpoints?" This was not exactly the case, but Blake confirmed. "You have a very different view on the organization than most. You see their merits, both past and present, but you see their weaknesses clearly because they affected you horribly.

"You left us in search of Faunus Rights but found the White Fang. The two aren't in agreement and never were, no matter what past leadership may have said. You were disappointed throughout your stay with the organization and it mounted to a point where you could not take anymore. Unfortunately, this means that you will be more susceptible to these sorts of snapping instances. It sounds like a number of things went wrong and frustrated you to the point of lashing out. Did Yang do anything wrong to you directly?"

The argumentative side of Blake's mind searched desperately for something to pin on her partner, but until the moment they shouted at each other, there had been no instance where Yang had directly accosted her. "N-no," Blake answered honestly. However, she believed, such an answer would only prove her wrong. For this, she argued, "She tried to fight the crowd, though."

"The…crowd?"

Blake let out a shuddering sigh as she explained, "We ran into a protest rallying for White Fang ideals. They weren't White Fang, but they believed they were. Yang threatened to fight them all if they wouldn't let us go."

"And did she mean them, the threats?"

"Yes."

"Are you sure she wasn't using hyperbole to frighten them?"

"Mom, Yang is fully capable of taking on a crowd by herself. If she says she will fight anyone, it would only be a matter of when."

"And you didn't want to fight them because they were protesting against the White Fang's cause?"

"No. They were unarmed."

A silence settled between the two as Lilian absorbed this information. Blake knew that there was something going on in her mother's mind that was bound to hurt when it was eventually stated, but until that time came, the young Faunus would sit in her own confusion, seized by distrust and self-loathing.

Soon enough, this silence would be broken by Lilian's conjecture. "Perhaps you're angry because she did not listen to you. She did not listen to you about the White Fang or this protest, and you saw this as something akin to the White Fang not listening to you. Did you voice your opposition to Yang about your involvement with the protest?"

"Yes, I told her that we shouldn't have gone in. And when she was threatening them, I told her that we needed to leave."

"Did she listen?"

"Not the first time, no." Blake paused for a moment, considering the second part to the previous explanation. "But she did the second time."

"Did she apologize for that first time?"

"I…Yes." Slowly, the past was becoming clearer to the young Faunus as perspective was gleaned. Lilian was not soothing her daughter as she was expected to, but rather she was setting things right, opening doors through which Blake could see and paths which she could take. By admitting that Yang had apologized, a pang of regret struck the girl in black. However, this pang would be countered by one of prideful inflexibility. As such, she argued, "But she didn't know what she was apologizing about. She didn't understand why our interference with the protest was wrong and she doesn't understand why we hurt the way we do."

Suddenly, Lilian's voice grew more severe, as though she were reprimanding her daughter. "It does not matter if she feels the pain we do because we do not feel pain at all times. If she were to feel the sting of society's outrage, then it would break her as it would anyone else—human or otherwise. No one deserves what we have gone through, and if you'd have her empathize continuously, then she would not be your friend but just another person who pities you.

"From what I can gather, she was there for you, not them. She is reckless, no doubt, but she did not strike me as the type of person to be cavalier with anyone's life, let alone yours. If she apologized, then it was for your sake, not the White Fang's. She cared about only your experience and wellbeing, and this is why she apologized to you and not to them. Of course she will not understand the plight of the Faunus overall, but this is to be expected and cannot be changed. Her lack of understanding does in no way reflect her capacity for sympathy, and by her apologizing, she showed a humility that most simply wouldn't have in the sort of situation you two were in.

"Blake, if you felt hurt during your time in the crowd, then it was because of them, not Yang. It sounds like you were frustrated at them and displaced your anger onto her. Your father and I did much the same when we were younger, and it is unfortunate. However, you'll find that Yang had your best interests in mind when you were amid the protesters."

The young Faunus quietly nodded, not entirely believing what was being said, but accepting it as a definite possibility. Yang did have her roundabout ways of doing things, and perhaps this was one of those times when the blonde defied expectations. The interaction with the crowd was reprehensible, but her use of the word "Sorry" was not. No, Yang truly had been sorry—she had been sorry about her own actions and for not being able to understand entirely what was going on. From Blake's perspective, this only made herself seem like the villain, no better than the White Fang.

"If you're looking for my opinion on the matter," Lilian continued, "neither of you were wrong. But neither of you were right, either. This is a grey area that you will have to work through together, and it will always be that way. For the time being, I'd say apologize to each other and talk about it, as painful as that may be."

But this was impossible now after everything Blake had said in their argument. She had implied a separation, a sudden split in a relationship still fairly new to her. And she had visibly upset Yang in the process.

There was no apology apt for this situation and there was no way to take these words back. The words had been said and their effects had sunken in and Blake had chosen the coward's path once again by running away and hiding. She was not as strong as Yang, as confident as Yang, and she never would be. She could not comfort anyone about anything, only apply reason and logic that might help the person better understand the situation. But understanding, in this circumstance, would only twist the blade hilted in Yang's heart. She might explain what she meant and this would further the fear of separation or, perhaps, she could lie about what was said and claim it all innocuous. But she would not lie to Yang, not when she was in pain. Reason and logic would only hurt the blonde as it now did Blake, who atoned for her compounding mistakes.

There was still an awareness that Yang had done wrong, but Blake saw now that she, herself, had acted childishly. All the while, her mother waited on the other end of the connection, lacking the unnerved expression which plagued the daughter. Perhaps this was all teenage angst and the situation meant little, but they had taken their argument too far and now it meant something.

"Mom, I think I might have broken up with Yang."

A sputtering noise came from the older woman, breaking the façade of calm. This reaction only managed to make Blake shrink even further against the headboard of her bed, pulling her legs closer and gripping the phone tighter. "You…what? Blake, please tell me you didn't."

"I-I don't know what I did, mom, I just said it. I said that I could be fine on my own and that I didn't need her."

"Blake, that girl travelled with you halfway across the kingdom." Lilian's expression was all but a frown now, a mix of parental disappointment and personal disbelief over this incredibly rash action. "She stood beside you through all of your troubles and couldn't stop talking about you when she was here. If it weren't for her, you would have run away from your father and I once again when we opened our door to you. It doesn't matter if that girl is not a Faunus and does not understand the way humans have treated our people. She is your friend and she loves you very much. You cannot simply throw a friend like her away over a petty argument. Tell me you did not mean what you said."

Tears clouded the young Faunus' vision as she realized the severity of her actions. Though she seemed correct in the moment, she saw now that she had been like the vicious traitors of the White Fang's leadership she had grown furious at. She had thrown Yang to the crowd and had attacked her when the blonde had tried to get back into the Faunus' favor. Blake had imagined a rift between them that simply did not exist, all because of the crowd's hostility.

Her mother was right. Yang was a friend, and leaving her to the wolves was nothing any friend should do to another.

Blake would answer eventually and with a quaver to her voice as she whispered, "No, I…I don't think so…" She thought of Yang and the smiles they had shared with each other for months upon months versus this one frustrating point in time. Yang had only been a shining light in her dark, shadowy life, and this one instance where she winced at that light had burned them both, potentially fatally. The young Faunus closed her eyes and pushed through her confusion, fighting back her tears as she said with all certitude, "No. No, I didn't. I don't want to lose Yang, mom, I…I just didn't know what to do."

A hum came from the telephone line, one belonging to the reassurance of the maternal Faunus. "Well, I'm glad you called, then. I'm glad you'd rather be knowingly confused and reliant on others for support than lie to yourself and continue to make brazen decisions."

Unfortunately, Lilian's reassurance could not alter her daughter's mood which had sunk from the previous doubt and self-loathing into complete panic and shame. Blake had wrongly accused Yang of attacking the protesters when, in fact, they had attacked her. Blake had lied about her lack of understanding—who else in this world might better understand Blake than her own partner and girlfriend who had quelled the pains of memory and the stress of anxiety? And she had told Yang that all of this frustration was due to her "smothering" the Faunus when her actions were truly comforting and warm. Blake had insisted that life without the blonde would not only be possible, but ideal. This was a terrible, horrible lie.

As the two Faunus paused, one out of contemplation, the other out of consternation, a question burned away at the back of Blake's mind and was brought quickly to the forefront. It was a flame that could sear and singe, but one that might warm if answered correctly. However, with the current state of the young Faunus' mind, the thought merely burned with its evidenced answer. But it was worth asking for Yang's sake, even if the blonde was scornful by now.

"Mom?" Blake asked, knowing already how she would be responded to. "Are relationships between Faunus and humans wrong?"

A deep sigh was released from the elder Faunus. "Blake, you know what my answer will be."

"I know you don't approve of them, but are they wrong? Objectively, are they wrong?"

"Blake, your grandmother was no fool. She married who she thought was best for her, and that man was your grandfather, a human. They lived in Mistral, where Faunus were still hunted for sport, let out onto the hills for the enjoyment of aristocrats, and my father was one of them. He didn't have a taste for murder, of course, but it was expected of him and common practice for those of his society. When my mother met him, he stopped going on those hunts and spent all his days with her. They were in love, Blake, but they couldn't be and admitted their feelings only to each other.

"When his parents found out about them, my mother was barred from seeing him and he from her. But even under this duress, they married and fled to Vale. Blake, with that union, my father and all his reputation was replaced by my mother's. Every time a Faunus and a human unite, one's reputation always takes precedence over the other—in good times, the human's, in bad, the Faunus'. It's a combination viable only from biological and romantic standpoints. When I was born, I was treated as a disappointment by everyone I interacted with. My father lost his standing and never regained his poise. My mother, however, remained the same: beaten, broken, but full of love for my father and I.

"If you are asking if relations between human and Faunus can objectively exist, then you should look no further than your own existence for an answer. But if you ask if they are advisable, then the answer is a resounding no. There is and always will be pain and dissension that surrounds such marriages. I could not ever advise anyone under any circumstance to choose a partner of the opposite species for the pain I have seen first-hand."

Blake frowned into her knees, finding her mother's answer to be what had been expected. Pain would face them at all times, and this could spawn from even Blake herself. Yang did not deserve this fate, nor did she need to understand the Faunus' plight by way of replication. She had never needed to be kind to her partner, but she loved Blake nevertheless. Pain would always haunt them.

"However," Lilian sighed tiredly, causing Blake's inner tangent to stop for the moment, "you seldom choose who you fall in love with. You and Yang are an enigma together. I've never seen two people so amused by one another who would not be the best of friends. I may not trust Yang with our name yet, Blake, but she is an inexplicably kind girl. She is good for you and you for her. I may not support human-Faunus relations, but you and Yang are my exception. Every bit of propaganda you had instilled in your being will be a lie when pitted against the force of you and your partner. I hope you know this."

Though they did not make Blake smile, the words were incredibly reassuring to hear. Both from sentiment and logic, Blake trusted her mother above the crowd, and because Lilian had assented to their relationship while in Sierra and because she now gave an agreeable stance, the young Faunus had regained her moral compass which had hitherto guided her well.

Still, there were problems to face, and these were problems that outside advice could simply have no sway in. "Thank you," Blake would quietly say.

"Do not thank me. Thank Yang. After all, she's the reason why we're talking right now." The young Faunus could hear the smirk that formed her mother's countenance. "Anyhow, I think it is time I let you go. I'd imagine Yang is taking this harder, having no one to talk to, herself."

Blake simply hummed in dour agreement.

"If you need anything else, do not be afraid to call. Your father still wants to catch up on all your adventures at the Academy." She paused a beat. "We love you, Blake, your father and I, but so does Yang. See that she does not lose that feeling. Apologize to her."

The girl in black sighed before accepting. "Okay, I will. I love you, too, mom."

"Take care."

At this, the call was ended and the phone went quiet. Still, Blake held it to her ear as a means of warding off the silence.

There was once a time when she loved this silence. She would run away from those around her, be them White Fang members or students at Beacon, into the quiet embrace of peace. It was in silence that she could read and collect her thoughts, effectively distracting her from past politics and mistakes. It brought her away from people, from potential betrayers, and into the infinite escape which novels do allow. But now she loved Yang and the previous infatuation fell away for the delights of companionship and warmth. She did not become increasingly sociable, but she did value time spent alone with the blonde over time spent simply alone. It was cold in the silence of escape, and Yang was brave.

But she had left Yang alone—Yang who had admitted a discomfort for silence and abandonment. She was somewhere beyond the locked door, mourning the separation she had been left with, having no distraction. Her cheerful sister who had been with her for all her life was now away on a date with a girl who Yang had despised and Blake could not bring herself to face the repercussions caused by her statement of separation. There might have been a sob that came from the girl of gold, perhaps a groan of fury, but Blake could not admit herself the means to hear. Her ears flattened against her head, blocking out all sound except the low whine of the sisters' phone.

Blake was a coward. There was no way around it, she thought. Just like that night in southern Vale, she had run away from her problems rather than facing them and rectifying the situation. She told Yang that she would be fine without her, and this was simply not true. She had gone too far and more than likely ended this summer prematurely. Tears began to roll again, but these were a coward's weapon of self-pity. They were frustrated, sad, angry, and wholly remorseful, and fell without any choke or sob, catching in her leggings as she held her legs near.

She missed Yang now, missed her presence and warmth and laugh. Yang was the only person able to console Blake now, not her mother, not herself, but she was far away, both physically and emotionally. Where there had not been a rift, there now was, and where there had not been pain, there was now a scar. It was likely this argument, no matter how short it had been, would never leave either of their memories which had been falsely painted brilliant summer hues these past two months. Darkness was ahead of them, both of the Grimm and of the past, and not even Yang's teachings of forward movement could alter this path.

But there would be no ambition to help the blonde because Blake knew she had failed. She had forsaken her own partner and girlfriend to side with a protest that, even in her darkest of days, had been a joke. It was no longer a just cause she fought for nor her own prudential cause, but of the moments set immediately before her—she acted on impulse as she had been trained not to and sided against the righteous for the exceptions. She was backwards in her beliefs, placing priority on insecurities rather than those she held dearest—she placed the protest before her partner and as well the White Fang before her parents. She was a cowardly mess who could but cry at her own faults and mistakes rather than face them head-on—she would run from the crowd in terror to stumble and fall and bruise with no hope of recovery.

And now Yang was in the same darkness Blake had been in. The blonde of light and fire would fight herself and would last a thousand blows, growing stronger with each assault in the worst way possible. She faced abandonment yet again and rightfully feared her girlfriend's departure. Blake would be just another name and another story to tell to the future companion of the loving blonde. The Faunus had betrayed her and pierced the shield which had been unbreakable. Blake knew Yang well and knew that once a breach was found in her defenses, there would be no way of saving her unless she was consoled by those she held dear. But Ruby was away and Blake was cowardly and all those others who played a hand in Yang's formation were one of dead, apathetic, or long gone.

This frustration was caused by neither Yang nor the crowd, but by Blake herself who could not bear the weight of pain. This frustration was the result of the compounding stress in her life and the argument had been perhaps the zenith of her outrage. It was the lies of the White Fang, small at first and corroding overall, but eventually large and impossible to accept. It was her leave from the organization and from her parents and from the Faunus which stood ready for her order and the cowardice these actions formed. It was the struggle of readjusting to what was deemed a normal life after living a decade in silent, militant conditions. It was the contrast of this summer to that of the rest of her life and the plight of love on a heart unaccustomed to expression. It was the trip to Sierra, the reconnection with her parents, the acceptance she found with them, and her soon-after leave. And, as for today, it was the pain shared from Yang's stories of past relations and an unfortunate reacquaintance with a past long forgotten. It was the past—the past that Yang fought against and the past Blake wore as a scar.

Yang did not deserve this pain. Blake should take the brunt of it.

But Blake could not apologize, for who would forgive such a deed? Certainly not Yang who had trusted her with insight into her past. Instead, Blake would simply sit there, listening to the dull hum of the phone and cradling herself into as much of a ball as she could in order to cry like the coward she was.

She did not know when exactly it would happen in relation to these latest revelations, but eventually, a presence would be heard outside the door and the knob would be tried. Whoever it was had been quiet—likely due to pain that could turn a person hesitant for fear of repercussion. Afterwards, a confident knuckle rapped the door twice and was followed by expectant silence.

On instinct, Blake was frightened by this. She knew that Yang was in pain, but such confidence in action must surely mean anger or something of the destructive kind. For this, the Faunus choked out weakly, "I said I needed time to myself!"

However, a voice met hers which was shrill and militaristic, curt and formal with a nagging edge. "It's me," Weiss said from behind the door.

Blake sighed. She did not know if this action was out of relief or disappointment, but whatever the case, it served to rally her motivation to clamber out of her bed and move to the door. All the while, she wiped away her tears, sniffled, and ensured her appearance showed as little of her prior emotion as she could. When she opened the door, she found Weiss waiting with the same bored, imperious look that she always seemed to carry. Somehow, this normalcy was calming.

The heiress wasted neither time nor words in entering the Faunus' room, and it was only then that Blake could notice what her teammate was wearing. Clad in ivory chiffon, Weiss moved noisily to her teammate's bed and sat down immediately, in the process showing the full gown of pure white and the décolletée embellishments of what looked to be white flowers seen only in the highest of mountains.

It was then that Weiss let out a tired groan, one of tolerable pain and total relief. "Long night," she said. "A Long night indeed."

Still trying to compose herself, the best Blake could offer for this entrance was a mere "You look nice." Even then, this came with a croaking unease that afflicts one who has not spoken for hours at a time.

"You should see Ruby," Weiss replied with more than a slight smirk. She sighed. "Rarely do I get the chance to dress for a formal occasion anymore, and when a chef demands a certain dress code, well, I'm not one to refuse. Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy dressing like this; tonight was fun. I'm simply letting my mind wander, and I trust you won't divulge my ramblings. It was a long night, after all."

The heiress shook her head, smiling one last time before gracefully losing her grin for one of characteristic stoicism. "But enough about me," she said. "You were in an argument."

Blake took a step back in uncertainty. "H-how do you know?"

Weiss gave her a lame look that silently told that the answer was obvious, if not to Blake. The girl in white then motioned to the place beside her. "Come, sit. We have much to discuss. You don't mind if I sit here, do you?"

It took a moment to accept this invitation, but Blake eventually sighed, "No, it's fine." Hands folded hesitantly in her lap, the young Faunus found her place beside her teammate. "Why are you here?"

"Well, there is the fact that Ruby and I returned and came upon the sight of a _very_ distressed Yang. Now, there are only two people in this world I can think of who have the potential to cause such a reaction as we saw, and one of those two people was with me the entire night. So, it's a safe assumption that you and she had a bit of a spat."

"That's an understatement…"

"Oh, I am aware. Normally, I'm not one to feel any sort of attachment to Yang, but there is something seriously wrong with her. Even I don't hate her as much as it would take to ignore her completely right now. I've been through what she's going through, you have, Ruby as well, and we can't simply stand by while she struggles with herself, and you can't sit around while she's weeping about you."

"Did you try to help her?" asked Blake quietly, hoping that Yang was recovering. "Is she all right?"

"Of course not," the heiress answered, not a bit frivolously. "You know how I get around the…lachrymose and especially Yang. The mixture of those two, I cannot help but feel, is prone to melodrama." Blake's head bowed as she looked to her lap. "But I left her with Ruby and came to find you. What happened?"

The question was repeated again at Blake's uncertain eyebrow. Truthfully, the Faunus had not been listening to much of what Weiss had to say after she stated that she had left Yang alone. She now had information about Yang's state and it was not good. But Blake would answer Weiss' questions now rather than sprinting out and consoling the blonde because there was still a lack of certainty as to if an apology could ever suffice. A quiet whimper hummed in the back of the Faunus' throat as she began. "I…We ran into a White Fang protest and Yang pushed through. We got in an argument with the crowd and then with each other."

"Hmm," Weiss hummed, apparently considering the situation. "I imagine she was reckless?" Blake nodded. "Unaware?" Again, Blake nodded. "Pigheaded?"

"Weiss."

"I'm sorry. I'm simply trying to get an idea of what the situation was since so little information was supplied."

Blake sighed. "We encountered opposition, she argued with the protesters, threatened them with physical violence despite them being unarmed, and I took it to heart."

"As you should," said Weiss plainly. "She had no business arguing with them. Why were you even there in the first place?" An answer was attempted, but the heiress cut her teammate off. "It doesn't really matter. What matters is that you two fought. At least, I should say, you two didn't devolve to blows, which is good, all things considered. The problem now is that tearful mess down the hall who's crying your name."

"She's…crying?"

"Believe me, I was surprised, too. Whatever you said, it hit her hard, and now she's inconsolable. Even Ruby isn't having an effect on her."

"She…isn't mad?" Though her sentiment was a bit delayed and even more so inappropriate, Blake found hope through this question.

"Not in the definition you are using, but no, she is not mad."

This was good, relatively. This meant that their relationship was not lost forever. Still, Yang was in pain and Blake had no means of making it up to her. Moreover, if Ruby could not help her sister, what good could Blake do? It should be said that this particular thought process began the movement towards motivation which would eventually bring the two back into each other's presence. However, it would take a bit more questioning to get to this point, leading to Blake's inquiry of, "How is she? How did she look when you saw her?"

Weiss exhaled with an expression about herself like that of a person bearing horrible news which must be handled tactfully. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you outright, so what I will say is that she is obviously distressed. Visibly so. It's like she isn't Yang anymore, but someone lesser. She is caught between fury and anguish, and it has left her writhing about the living room as she whispers your name.

"Blake, whatever you did has broken Yang. She needs you right now. I'd imagine there are difficult emotions between you two, but if you truly do need to separate from her, at least let her down easily. If there is any one person on this planet you should not want to upset, I think it would be Yang, not because of how nice she may be or how sickeningly positive she is, but because she is inherently volatile. If not for her safety, help her for yours."

"I…" She had broken Yang? Yang was…writhing? Truly Blake did not know the horrors she could inflict upon another. Such cruelty could have been attributed only to the White Fang in her past, but now she knew that her own words had destroyed the indestructible. "I'm sorry," she whimpered.

"I would assume so," answered Weiss. "But I'm not the one who needs to hear that."

Without any hesitation, Blake stood from her bed, purpose renewed and mind set on consoling Yang no matter how terrible the damage might be. She looked to the open door, clenched her fists, and focused her hearing to a point down the hall. She heard a shuddering growl that could only have come from Yang who strived constantly for her façade. It was a chilling sound which caused Blake's hearing to retreat and her gaze to rest upon Weiss again. For the sake of rationality, she needed a third opinion. "Weiss?"

Again, the heiress would let out a relieved sigh as she stood and stretched her arms.

"What do you think about relationships between humans and Faunus? Are they…acceptable?"

Perhaps it was her uncharacteristically happy mood brought about by her seemingly successful date, but Weiss gave a flippant hum as she mulled the question over for a moment. Eventually, she would say with all certainty, "What do I care? The Faunus hate me as it is, so I'm sure my opinion won't hold any weight in the world overall. On top of that, you're my friend, and who you fall in love with is none of my business. Do I believe they are wrong? I'd be lying if I said no, for some part of me will always feel that way due to my rearing. But then again, I'd also be lying if I said yes. You could do a lot better than Yang, but you could as well do a lot worse than her; though, I shudder to think of what would be worse than Yang.

"No one on this team would mind a relationship between you two. You certainly have proven yourselves competent in that regard. Of course, your argument is a sizeable setback, but you will only find support among Team RWBY. It may seem wrong on different levels, a relationship between a human and a Faunus, but I would consider it acceptable if it were between you and Yang."

The heiress paused and smiled a slight smile, indicating a shift in topic. "Blake, she needs you right now. She doesn't need your argument to be taken back or your words rescinded, she simply needs you: your presence, your apology."

At this, Blake nodded and readied herself, eyes closed and fists clenched as she prepared to vault that wall of thorns which separated cowardice from bravery. Once more she nodded and decided that she was ready. Blake turned to the door, wiping away the last of her tears and began to move. However, she would be halted one more time by the heiress in ivory.

"Blake?" The Faunus turned. "Don't lose your edge. If you do, you might lose Yang in the process."

Without another word, Blake accepted and left her room in search of Yang.

She had done wrong, been a coward, and now was the time for rectification. Now was the time to repay the debt she had just incurred and to ensure that their separation would not come to pass. She had promised Yang that she would never leave her. This was a pact formed from necessity which now afflicted them both, and it was a bond that Blake would not knowingly break for any reason. The crowd was wrong, the White Fang was wrong, and most of all, Blake was wrong. Although Yang threatened the protesters, they were the ones to incite pain instead of the blonde. They were not supportive of Faunus Rights, merely oppositional-defiant in their methods to all who might argue against them. They had evoked Blake's insecurity and Yang had suffered greatly. Now was the time for rectification and apology which Yang so desperately needed.

The young Faunus exited the hall and came to a halt in the sisters' living room. At first, she tried to scan her surroundings, but she was stopped by an indomitable cold which permeated the house. She could see that the front door was closed, so this was surely not a draft, but even then, this arctic air would not be appropriate for the summer climate of Vale. Furthermore, she found with her panicked gaze that the lights of the house were somehow dimmed to a low shadow that seemed to breathe, glowing with each inhale and darkening with each shuddering exhale.

It was then that Blake heard Ruby's voice from the other room, causing her to rush to the leader's location. Upon dashing through the portal into this locale, she was halted by a sight of desolation.

Yang shook weakly as she buried her face in her hands. She neither sobbed nor gave any outward appearance of crying because she believed herself too strong for such an action. Yet she seemed frail now, broken from her usual confident self. Her ragged breaths somehow did not fog in the way the Faunus' did and she seemed only concerned with the pain of her emotions rather than of her body. She seemed pale now, paler than usual, and incredibly weak—defenseless, Blake was to observe. With words alone, Blake had destroyed a force deemed indestructible.

Ruby sat nearby, placing a hand on her sister's back and whispering quiet assurances all the while. She shook as well, but these tremors proved to be shivers with her own red ombré gown, one consonant with her regular attire and hair colors but one that was of no practical use in this cold. However, Ruby was not Blake's concern at the moment.

The closer the Faunus got to her partner, the colder the air became. Within five feet of the blonde, the air had chilled so harshly that even the tears which had pained Blake emotionally now stung her physically.

Ruby looked to Blake but did not say anything, silently pleading for help as she, herself, began to form tears. Blake looked to the young girl and nodded, causing Ruby to rest her head on Yang's shoulder as one last attempt at consolation before pulling away and standing. The young leader looked to her teammate for a moment, regarding her with a hopeful expression and then wrapped Blake in a quick, thankful hug. Without a word, Ruby retreated off into the other room to find Weiss.

It was then that Blake took Ruby's place, sitting beside her partner. Yang did not react whatsoever, still keeping her face hidden in her hands. It was doubtful that she would have noticed her partner's arrival anyways, and as such, not a word was shared between the two. Only from this distance could Blake hear the silent whimpers that emanated from the strong blonde. It was apparent that she truly was crying as she gasped for the occasional breath and mouthed her partner's name continually. This was a pain unimaginable for Yang.

Blake elected to sit in her own misery for a moment, feeling the bite of the cold air and witnessing the effects of her own reckless actions. This was not who Yang was supposed to be. This was not the tireless blonde who had always been so sunny. This was not the ever-upbeat fighter whose purpose in life seemed to be positivity and puns. Blake had destroyed a beautiful individual and crushed her into implacability. Blake had displaced her anger wrongly and now she had another name to add to her list of people she had failed.

It did not take much further thought to will the Faunus into reaching out and hugging her partner from the side. Blake wrapped her arms around Yang's shoulders, pulling her close as the girl in black buried her face into the flaxen hair and shuddered. She was so sorry. She hated herself, the crowd, the White Fang, but mostly herself. She could feel Yang's form again which had once been warm but was now a glaciated statue. Her tears began to fall again as no reaction came from the blonde. There had been a fleeting thought that ran through the Faunus' mind that her damage had been done and could never be undone now that she had broken Yang. However, a gasp was heard and the cold was suddenly lifted, bringing with it the returned light of the room and a spark of hope within the young Faunus' heart.

"Blake…?"

The girl in question shuddered again into her partner, nuzzling Yang in the hope that doing so would rekindle her warmth. "I'm here. I'm so sorry, Yang. I'm so, so sorry."

In an instant, the Faunus' arms were torn from her partner's form. She expected this action to be coupled with an animalistic scowl of hatred as would be expected from one she had betrayed, but what she found was a disbelieving grin as Yang's eyes returned to their regular lilac. Just as quickly, Blake found herself caught in a desperate hug of Yang's own, one that was strong enough to pop a few vertebrae and warm enough to be thankfully suffocating—wonderfully smothering, if Blake was to muse.

Blake took but a second to recover from her surprise before hugging Yang back and never letting go. She should not have yelled at her. She should not have doubted her. Where there was not a rift, there now was, and Blake could only hope that she could mend it in time. With the absence of the arctic chill, her tears fell freely, catching on the leather of her partner's jacket. She could see from the corner of her eye that the ghostly skin was warming to a healthier hue, and for this, she smiled weakly, if not hopefully.

They would sit there like this for a while, Yang gripping tightly onto her shivering partner and Blake taking in the accepting presence of the exuberant youth. There seemed to be no blow Yang could not withstand if she was able to rebound this quickly. Blake believed the blonde was only acting this way for her partner's sake, but there was something about the strength with which this hold was given that shifted the perceived sentiment away from appeasement to thankfulness. Yang was evidently thankful for Blake's return and Blake was thankful that Yang would accept her, argument, flaws, and all.

Eventually, Yang would come to rest her head upon Blake's shoulder in kind, leaving the two at each other's ears as they smiled slightly and treaded warily over the thin ice still beneath them. "You don't need to apologize, Blake," the blonde would whisper, her voice being unable to reach above a low decibel. "I'm the one who should be sorry. I shouldn't have been so aggressive with those Faunus. I…didn't know what I was doing."

"You were protecting me," Blake assured. "You knew exactly what you were doing. I was the one who acted rashly, siding with them rather than you. You were only trying to move the day along and get home, and I got mad at you."

"No, it's all right. You have every right to be mad. They were your people and I was insulting them—"

"No, Yang, you weren't." The Faunus did her best to match Yang's fervor and strength, pulling the warming form as close as possible as she shared her heat with the still cool skin of her partner's cheek. "They were insulting us. They were insulting you. Defending yourself is what we've been taught to do, and that's all that was. It doesn't matter if you threatened them; they were threatening us."

"But it was wrong." There was a conviction behind these words that could be construed in other circumstances as potentially frightened. However, Blake was talking to her partner again, and she did not seem angry. For this, the Faunus would smile and work towards mending the rift between them.

"And we know that now, so we'll never make the same mistake again."

"You mean you aren't angry?" Blake shook her head into her partner's shoulder. "And are we…are we still together?"

"Always," Blake said. "I should have never said what I did, and I now regret every word. If you'll forgive me, I will be by your side and never hold any of this against you. You're…you're family, Yang, regardless of I'm a Faunus and you're a human. I should have never favored them over you, and I'm sorry."

A wave of warmth washed over both girls as Yang sighed happily against the Faunus' neck. "Don't be," Yang said. "It's over now and we're still together. That's all that matters. We're home, you're safe, and everything's all right now.

"I love you, Blake."

The young Faunus pulled herself closer to the warm form which now shook from happiness rather than from bereavement. "I know," she said. "I know."

* * *

I might end up losing a few followers because of this chapter. Honestly, the story couldn't have continued on a cycle of fluffy, dour, fluffy, serious, and so on and so forth. Sometimes, a bit of tension is needed to keep the wheels spinning, and this is what this chapter was—well, more specifically, tension building more than tension itself, if you'll believe that. Although, I should not imply that this is the end of the fluff. No, there will be more fluff down the line; this is just me gearing up for the end of the fourth act and as well the entirety of the fifth.

With this chapter, we saw Blake and Yang stumble treacherously through their first argument. The result was them appearing to almost break up out of reactionary frustration and a lack of knowledge as to what to do, but then this was later rectified by their reconnection. I can see how someone could potentially see this chapter as going nowhere by its end, and I would understand that stance completely (after all, the arguments did somewhat lose their potency since the apology was included in the same chapter), but if you look at this chapter from a grander perspective, you might understand why the apology was included and why the arguments were simply brushed off by the end. As I said before, this chapter was intended to build tension. Now the seeds of doubt have been sown, uncertainty is rising between the characters and their differing motivations, and Blake and Yang's first argument is now out of the way. I'm not spoiling anything by saying this, but the arguments in this chapter will serve a greater purpose.

But I can understand how this chapter and its conflict may be stressful to a reader. And even though the ending was somewhat placating, there might be some lingering frustration because of the way Blake and Yang acted. For this, there is the short story _Solace_, which was written as my Christmas present to you all that does not take place during Christmas but instead during the summer break (more specifically, in the period between chapters thirteen and fourteen). It is a Bumblebee-centric story that was intended to focus on fluff. However, after reading this chapter, you might find that the memories recounted in the short story and the arguments had here share certain information.

And while I am plugging my own works, it would be wrong of me to not mention _Edelweiss_. Its second chapter was released mid-December of last year to a warm reception and high praise. For those of you who have an interest in White Rose or a curiosity about the goings-on between Ruby and Weiss which occur outside of _Valence_'s narrative, then _Edelweiss_ may interest you. Once again, I should say that the next chapter of _Valence_ will not be released until after the next chapter of _Edelweiss_, as is the previously discussed schedule.

Finally, I need to thank you all for reading. I have never asked any of you to follow or favorite or review, and I doubt I ever will, so the success of this story is yours alone. Out of the kindness of your hearts, this story has (as of this chapter's posting) passed the milestone of 200 followers. Though this may not seem like a lot to some of you, this number is completely unreal to me. That you all would stick around through variances in quality, durations of more than a month without an update, and an author who is woefully inept at humanizing his writing is a testament to your kindness. I know that _Valence_ can be all of difficult to read, wordy at times, bombastic with its aureate terms, excessive with chapter lengths, inscrutable with some of its perspectival rationalizations, impenetrable in its winding metaphors and motifs, and, most of all, pretentious on the whole, and the fact that you all have still supported this work is nothing short of astounding. Thank you for all that you have done, no matter if it has been following, favoriting, reviewing, reading, or simply observing from the shadows. Thank you so much.

Stay safe and stay tuned.

Five chapters remain.


	16. Chapter 16: Compassion

Before I begin this author's note, I should make one thing clear so to alleviate tensions and set the tone for the chapter accordingly. I will make a statement about Monty's passing, but it will follow the ending author's note so that any sadness or memories that may be caused by it can occur after the fact and not bleed into a separate narrative. This is so both the story and the statement can have their appropriate effects. I hope you understand.

That being said, thank you for reading. With the posting of this chapter, the story now totals over 300,000 words, an admittedly slight miscalculation from my initial projection (200,000 by the tale's end) but one that I cannot say I am displeased with. That you have tolerated me for this long is something I cannot begin to express my gratitude of. I understand the commonality among writers on this site to claim that their reviewers and readers are the assumingly sole reason why they continue to write, so to claim this would be unfortunately disingenuous on my part, but I must thank you all dearly and assure that your support and engagement with this story is the absolute reason why these chapters are coming out at a relatively quicker pace. You all are the best.

Now, in order to prime you for the impending chapter, I should recap the general tonal outline of the last. Previously, Blake and Yang struggled through their first argument as a couple, leaving them both broken in their respective ways and emotionally trepid even after apologizing. To those of you who commented that the apology seemed tentative and that their mindsets seemed not entirely restored, I can expressly say that you were correct. After their argument, an apology was given, but its existence was but an appeasement from one tearful character to another, leaving much to be said in the way of their upset. With this chapter, we see the fallout of this pain.

Again, thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy chapter sixteen of _Valence_.

* * *

Chapter 16: Compassion

Alone, in the dark, scared into a state of melancholic deference, Blake was at a loss for what to do. She could cry—it was a reasonable enough reaction to the overbearing stress of her own effects, but she had already done that and there were no more tears to be shed—or perhaps she could just scream. There was a forest behind the sisters' home that she could run out into, far back into the corners of silence and obscurity, and simply scream to her heart's content in order to properly chastise herself. Her lungs could burn so justly and perhaps more tears could be found while vocalizing this frustration at her mistakes. Truthfully, she did feel like running again, away from Beacon and the White Fang and her parents and RWBY and Yang most of all, but she would not because she simply could not. Perhaps it was pride, perhaps plain stubbornness, but she had succeeded so well beside Yang that to abandon her now and forsake all that they had accomplished together would be the single greatest failure in her life.

Words were terrible things, monstrous constructs built to communicate the ire of one so cowardly that forthright action and its resulting consequence was deemed too effete. Words had been Blake's passion—literature, language, and propaganda all defined who she was—but in the course of surrounding herself with them, she had become calloused to their power. Words were weapons as much as any gun or sword could ever be, but whereas steel could end an encounter quickly or be remedied through practiced medicine, words could bore a hole to the deepest pit of one's soul and leave a scar which would never heal.

What she had said to Yang could never be taken back. She could, and often did, apologize for it, but she had never referenced the occasion with any specifics since the night of. Now there was a gap in their relationship which the two were obviously aware of but were both too afraid to approach. Over the course of these past two weeks, Yang's hugs became somehow tighter, more desperate, and Blake could not say that her own did not, as well. The blonde would now frequently drop her voice to a soft whisper that only Blake could hear and utter hyperbolic compliments until the pain was gone. It was apparent that Yang desperately wanted to save their relationship. Blake did, too, but she unfortunately could not forgive her own shortcomings.

It was disconcerting that she had driven her girlfriend into such a state that the blonde's urgent attempts to prove herself were now an everyday occurrence. Yang did not need to prove herself to anyone, least of all Blake. She had already done so with every single second up until they braved the protest. But then Blake had claimed that she felt smothered, that she would do fine without Yang, and in doing so she had lied absolutely. She could possibly blame this reaction on her indoctrination by the White Fang or perhaps even teenage angst, but truly it was cowardice that had spurred her outrage.

But no longer would she be a coward. This was the admittedly unconvinced decision made on the night of the argument and, more specifically, at the moment of forgiveness. In Blake's eyes, Yang could do no wrong. She could be brash, brazen, and altogether bold, but she never meant harm unless the target of her actions dared accost those she held dear. Yang was constantly warm while the crowd had only been misguided and vitriolic—to place the cart before the horse in this instance would not only be wrong, it would be indicative of ruinous conditioning which had bled into her social life. This conditioning—this hatred for humanity—had no place in their relationship, and if Yang was to be brave about all of the obstacles they faced, then Blake should be able to act similarly.

Unfortunately, this was not the case. Blake had wanted to run, to scream. She had wanted to cry! Yang never cried, not unless she was hurt by someone she cared about. And yet Blake had made her tearful by cowardly lashing out at the nearest force. No, Blake could not be brave, she realized. She could willingly risk her life to save the people of Remnant from the Grimm and she could fight insurmountable odds beside her teammates, but to apologize and admit fault? It was easier said than done.

As was stated previously, this early evening which the two of uncertain mentalities were to embark upon would find them two weeks subsequent to their unfortunate squabble. Despite prior rationalizations and fears, the young couple held close to one another, Blake finding her usual position under her partner's arm and Yang rubbing the Faunus' own reassuringly. It was currently an early hour of the night which made way for a purple-orange twilight that shimmered endlessly across the vast expanse of ocean to the duo's side. A few stars were out and so too the fractured moon, but with the trail of promenade street lamps and sinistral shops and vendors, no one on this esplanade could remove their gazes from the horizontal plane.

"Esplanade" was a word Blake had been unfamiliar with until Yang had stated it so matter-of-factly prior to their argument. To be honest, this was one of the first words she had heard in a while that had forced her to refer to her dictionary. Apparently, Yang's knowledge of the word came from this particular landmark, causing Ruby to have the same information as well as an excitement about the locale that eventually led to a request for her and Weiss to accompany them. But alas this seaside promenade would be explored only by the troubled two of the team and myriad other couples and families who were out and about.

Unlike their earlier strolls through the city which had been entirely fun and earnest, both Blake and Yang were now aware of the gap between themselves and thus held as close as possible to each other. Blake, with a telling frown and ears bound out of rebuffed confidence, kept beneath the chin of her girlfriend as she watched the other couples with a half-lidded stare. She valued this warmth and the lavender scent that she knew was of Yang alone, and despite her self-deprecating thoughts, she would cling to this form and their relationship so that they would never fade as she feared.

Similarly, Yang would hold the Faunus close, having no qualms with displaying to those around her the love she held for the girl. She would maintain a contented smile and would speak as though nothing was wrong, but Blake knew that she was fortunately not running from the problem like her partner was. She was showing discretion and was purposefully avoiding the argument in order to keep Blake away from her own thoughts. In this way, she was being strong about the situation, and Blake was quietly thankful. Still, it was doubtful that the blonde had forgotten what had been said and it was more than likely that she harbored new reservations against her partner.

The mere thought of this pain inside the exuberant youth's heart caused an unwanted whimper to sound in the back of Blake's throat. Unfortunately, Yang noticed.

In an instant, the arms that coiled around the Faunus constricted, immobilizing Blake and sending her thoughts to desperate places as she scolded herself for worrying her partner. But the constricting of these arms was not painful in the least; rather, Yang's warmth was able to distract her from these terrible thoughts. With a long, insistent, but still somewhat reserved kiss to the familiar spot between Blake's upper ears, Yang communicated quite clearly her ease with the situation. This action was apologetic, it was sad, but because it came from Yang, it was hopeful, and Blake could not overlook the calm that spread through her body from the loving embrace.

"Blake?" Yang whispered, her voice lacking all confusion for care's stead. "Kitten? Is everything all right? You aren't still thinking about what happened, are you?"

The Faunus could only shiver and nod.

"I told you it's all right," soothed the blonde. "We're still together, and that's what matters. We apologized and made up for it and now everything's going to be okay. I won't leave you if you don't want me to and I know you didn't mean what you said. The crowd just got to us, Blake." Yang sighed into her partner. "They said some pretty nasty stuff that got stuck in your head, but you said what you needed to and got it all out, and, well…you didn't really overreact. I mean, you were probably right when you said I was smothering you and I'm—"

Suddenly, the Faunus stopped walking, bringing her connected girlfriend to a confused halt in the process. Yang was wrong. She was not smothering her partner; she was merely caring for her, and this was a fact that had truthfully scared the Faunus after her time with the organization. This care was still so foreign in a life filled with hostility, but it was also wonderful. Their summer up until the point of the argument had been, in a word, perfect. Everything had worked perfectly and now they could not recover from that one turbulent spat. For this, Blake sighed before moving from the blonde's arms and facing her, not minding the passing groups or the suddenness of her reaction.

"Yang," she said, catching lilac orbs with her teary own, "I love you. I…I don't know what I said to you and I don't know why I said it, either, but I do know that I love you. You're the most important thing in my life right now and throwing you to the side was…it was low, lower than I'd even expect from myself." The blonde frowned and attempted to reach out, but Blake shook her head and continued to stare resolutely into her girlfriend's soul. "I love you, Yang, more than anything else in the world. I can't live without you anymore. If you chose to suddenly leave or if I chose to run away again, I'd be broken after that. I'd lose a part of myself that simply cannot be regained without you being there."

"Blake, I—"

"Please let me finish," insisted Blake with a painful quaver. Yang warily appraised her for a moment before sighing and assenting with a nod. "You…You've been nothing but incredible ever since I met you. You've constantly had a smile on your face and a fire within your heart that I've always admired. You're motivated without due cause and you'll care for those around you without asking for anything in return." She lowered her gaze. "But I'm not like that. I'm a coward, Yang. If I can't see a way to win, I'll run, even when I know I need to admit defeat. I yelled at you over nothing—over nothing but memories. You're not the one who caused them, you didn't anger the crowd, but I did. I was the one who yelled at you. I was the one who turned on you when they were against us. I didn't even think of you when I yelled, I only thought about running away."

Blake looked back up to her partner, a scowl marking her final efforts to hold back tears. "I love you, Yang, and I promised I'd never leave you. That's an almost impossible promise for me to make, but I intend to keep my word. You didn't deserve the words I threw at you. You don't deserve the pain I'm causing you. You didn't smother me, Yang; my own memories did. The Wh…" She shook her head. "No, I was the one who smothered me. I keep running away from my problems and I keep hoping that once I catch my break, I'll be okay, but that's not the case at all. There is no break. If anything, you were the break I've needed and I treated you like every other mistake I've made. And now everything I've done is catching up to me and you're taking the brunt of it.

"But that's not right. I'm tired of being a coward. I'm tired of running. I just want to be with you, Yang. I…I don't care about the White Fang anymore, I don't care about Beacon, I don't care about anything anymore!" She shouted this last admission, drawing the attention of other groups on the walk and causing them to move away from the couple out of both reverence and fear. Regardless, Blake continued. "I just care about you, Yang. I shouldn't have said what I did, and I'm sorry. You deserve better from me—you deserve better _than_ me. I'm just another name to add to your list of terrible boyfriends, and my story will just be the girlfriend who cut you down with words."

Blake had intended to say more and continue with her self-effacing rambling, but Yang chose to ignore the established boundaries between them and moved to hold her in a hug. "You're not a story, Blake. You're a person—you're my favorite person." Before the Faunus could so much as think of pulling a way, a gloved hand moved to cradle the back of her head and pull her into the blonde's shoulder. "No matter what," she said, her voice moving from its previous whisper, "I'll always love you back. If you want to run away, I'll still love you. If you want to go back to Sierra or even the White Fang, I'll respect your decision. If you say worse stuff and if you mean any of it, I'll understand. No matter what you do, you'll always be my favorite person.

"You did say some stuff that kinda hurt, but it's really nothing to worry about. I know you'll eventually say something worse just like I will. Arguments happen, Blake, and even if this was a bad one, it won't be our worst." The Faunus frowned as she subconsciously nuzzled into her partner, relishing the sturdy form in this fragile world. "But that doesn't mean we have to like it. I love hanging out with you and listening to you talk. You're a smart girl, Blake, and you know your way around a weapon. You're strong, you're careful, and you've got a great head on your shoulders.

"But you're not a coward. I honestly don't know where you're getting that from."

"I ran away from you," Blake attempted.

"No, you didn't. You said it yourself; you just needed a minute to think about stuff. A coward would've left me alone, not only on the couch but back in the Emerald Forest."

"But I did leave you alone. I panicked and I locked myself in my room and just cried instead of helping you."

"But you came back. That's what matters." The hand that cradled her partner's head combed gently through the raven tangle, easing Blake's breathing and drying her tears. "Really, you're the least cowardly person I've ever met. It takes a lot of guts to run away from home at eight and stick with it—trust me, I tried—and it takes a whole lot more to stand up to an entire army like the White Fang. You saw problems in the world and you did what you had to so you could fix them. Maybe you can't fix the White Fang or save every Faunus, but if you think trying was cowardly, Blake, I'd be a wimp. And I can't even think of what to call Jaune."

Surprisingly, Blake felt her mood lift significantly at this aside. Nothing about the situation was particularly funny and this pain between them was definitely not, but Yang's attitude about the situation—her outlook—was restorative and reminiscent of why Blake had asked her out in the first place. Blake smiled, however briefly, because Yang was still with her despite those scathing words from before.

In kind, Yang laughed softly, her smile audible in this caring gesture. "You didn't do anything wrong, Blake," she assured. "You said some stuff that you probably regret, but that's all right. I don't care about any of that, just you. Really, you were probably in the right with saying that stuff to me—I probably deserved it after I forced you into the crowd."

"You didn't force me into anything," mumbled Blake, her voice unfortunately muffled by the strength of Yang's hold and the leather of her jacket.

"No, I did. I was impatient and couldn't stand to wait twenty minutes. Twenty minutes! I mean, really. What I did was dumb and you told me. I deserved what you said—honestly, I probably deserved more—and I totally get why you were mad at me."

No, she did not. How could she understand if Blake was unsure, herself? "I'm not mad at you anymore," Blake whispered. "I didn't mean to yell at you."

"I know, kitten. I know."

A storm was brewing in the distance. Where the orange of the sun and the violet of the shadows were to blend and create the transition into night, an expanse of leaden clouds loomed dangerously and inevitably. It would rain tonight and more than likely storm, but at this current juncture where fear and timidity ran rampant, these clouds were the least of the couple's concerns. However, the clouds would continue their approach regardless and Blake understood the effects of her irrationality under the phobic shock of thunder. If she could not apologize properly to Yang and mend somewhat the gap between them, then both would be met with pain tonight.

As such, Blake returned the hug she was given in earnest, sighed away these oppressing thoughts, and listened intently to the beat of her partner's heart. Even this was musical to her ears, the steady thump that increased in tempo when Blake lost her hands in the flaxen mane. It would be all right, she believed. Everything would be all right. Like any other wound, this situation simply needed the proper attention followed by patience. "I'm sorry, Yang," she said quietly. "I'm sorry for drawing attention to this right now."

"Don't be," Yang said. "It's good to get this out in the open. It's better than keeping it bottled up all night, that's for sure." The blonde then took Blake by the shoulders and pulled her reluctantly away so that she could smile at the Faunus and send a modicum of cheer into the bloodshot amber eyes. "Now," she began with a smirk, "what do you say we forget all of this for a second and just have fun? We've still got a date to go on and I still owe you dinner from that time our night got ruined."

Blake attempted to look into her partner's eyes again, but the evident happiness shown through Yang's visage only reminded her of what she had destroyed. "A-are you sure?"

"Positive! I wouldn't be anywhere else right now."

"I…" Perhaps Blake was brooding. She had acted this way in the White Fang and it had given away her displeasure despite her intent of hiding it. Furthermore, Yang was perceptive of emotional tells and seldom ignored any amount of pain that concerned those around her. Perhaps acceptance of this offer would be helpful—it would most certainly be relaxing if their prior instances of intimacy meant anything. Brooding was merely the act of delaying recovery so one could wallow in her own angst. Brooding gave a sense of self-importance which mimicked confidence so uncannily that assistance and its eventual restoration seemed inefficient in comparison. But Yang exuded true confidence with every smile she gave and every word she said, and accepting this offer of ignorance and bliss could perhaps supplement the gap, not only in their relationship, but in Blake's character as well. "Okay," the Faunus said, doing her best to crack a smile but failing woefully.

Fortunately, Yang did not draw attention to this shortcoming and instead placed a quick, smiling kiss on Blake's forehead before moving with her down the esplanade. With this seemingly simple action, the wanted frown on Blake's features naturally turned upward and a genuine smile was achieved for the first time in what felt like forever. She rested her head back against Yang's shoulder, wholly relieved to have someone so accepting and supportive in her life.

She realized that her furious shouts after the protest would have been an appropriate response to the White Fang's leadership who had never cared to understand her reasons for being upset, but yelling at Yang had been devastatingly wrong—Yang knew the Faunus better than anyone and constantly strived to understand her pain, and Blake knew this now. She realized that these apologies, while necessary for the mistakes she had made, were given with such deference that rather than collected admissions of fault, they could instead be claimed frightened pleas for normalcy. Yang was not a person who required apologies such as these. She most certainly deserved them, but she had been nothing but forgiving to the Faunus after everything Blake had done to her this summer and during the past two semesters. This, in turn, caused Blake to worry that her reaction was unwarranted and overly stressful.

But this thought would fade just as quickly as it came while the Faunus simply took in the ocean air and the company who held her close, faults and all. If ever there was a night to make up for past mistakes, there could not be one as beautiful as this, Blake believed. Though her smile would not return to the self-assured grin of weeks ago, her expression would gradually warm with her partner's aura.

Blake had never before seen Vale's bay at this distance, and though it was unfortunate that her emotions were muddled upon this first viewing of it, she still found reprieve in the sounds of the coming tide. The muted roars and hisses of unending repetition preceded all else within the bound ears of the Faunus, blocking out sounds of cheerful couples and excited children on both the cobbled path they walked and the sandy shore not too far away. The day was ending, but the energy it held only multiplied with the addition of constellations both terrestrial and otherwise.

Truthfully, the catalyst pain from before seemed petty in Blake's eyes. Of course the consequences of her actions were terrible and the damage caused was unable to be looked over, but the frustration created by the crowd and her more contemporary apologetics were simply figments deemed necessary by her anxious imagination. Everyone deserved an apology after being wronged, but Yang did not seem to require excessive assurances, being that she appeared unafraid at the moment.

For this, Blake could perhaps let these stagnantly reverent sentiments go. Perhaps she could focus her attention on Yang instead of herself and enjoy the moment like the blonde wanted her to.

She sighed and allowed herself to be happy, if only for a little while. She would not forget the pain that she had caused, but she would work towards bettering their relationship. After all, Yang had advised her to move forward rather than hang on to the past, and though this lifestyle was not without fault, the blonde seldom lost her smile to anything mundane and continued to warm those around her without fail. Yang was still a role model to Blake in certain ways, even after these past two months of dating. The blonde was confident, brave, and she knew how to have fun. She could dismiss any worry with a smile and always took care of those around her in spite of her own inner turmoil. But now that turmoil had reached its boiling point, and ignoring it was no longer an option for either girl. It was then that Blake decided that she would work towards being a better girlfriend rather than apologizing for not.

It took a considerable amount of effort, but eventually Blake would hum in relief as she nuzzled into her partner's collar and stared out at the bay. "You know," she began wistfully, catching Yang's immediate, smiling attention, "we never did go to the beach. I always assumed that summer breaks consisted of that for kids our age."

Thankfully, Yang chose not to remark on the sudden shift in mood and instead responded in her regular disarming way. "You're saying that like it's impossible now. You know we can still go, right? I bet Ruby'd love that."

"I'd like it, too," Blake said, lifting her head from the blonde's shoulder and greeting her with her best attempt at a smile. Fortunately, the instability she had felt in this expression went unpunished and was met with a toothy grin.

"Wait. I thought cats hated water," joked the youth. "Is there something you're not telling me, Blake?"

With this, Blake's attempted smile became noticeably more sincere and lifted her mood enough so that she could answer, "Well, I'm not a cat, remember?"

"Oh. Right. You're a Faunus. How could I _ever_ forget?" This received a reprimanding elbow in response which only caused Yang to laugh. "No, there's something else you're not telling me, and I've got a feeling it has something to do with that beach."

At this point in their relationship, Blake was certain that she knew Yang well enough to understand that this supposed uncertainty was undoubtedly false. The jocund blonde had a habit of drawing out the inevitable and playing toward her expected reputation while internally planning a suitable course of action. Whatever machinations whirred in her mind were doubtlessly mischievous, but in this recovering state, perhaps a bit of mischief could be helpful. To this, Blake smirked at the blonde's show of contemplation.

"Well, maybe you just wanna go 'cause it's the beach. And to be fair, who doesn't like going to the beach, right? Or maybe you just want to take a long, romantic walk with me so you be all sappy and stuff—not that I'd mind, by the way. But that doesn't really sound like you, does it? Ooh, maybe you do like the water and just want to go swimming. I mean, it can get rough during the summers here when there isn't a public pool within ten miles of home. Or maybe…" Suddenly, realization struck Yang, causing her to gasp in loud alarm. "Blake!" she exclaimed, a chiding offense to her word. "You just want to go to the beach so you can see me in a bikini!" She sent a playful glare to the Faunus and frowned. "Is that it?"

Blake's expression immediately lost all tells of prior pain for an unprepared blush. This was not what she had expected, not in the least. The thought Yang had ascribed to the Faunus had never occurred to her, but now Blake fought desperately to keep the image out of her head. It was a struggle to do so, one that she quite frankly wanted to succumb to, but her defiance and drive for equanimity kept her thoughts coherent and her blush a noticeable red. Her response, as stuttered as it was, told both girls everything they needed to know about the young Faunus' recovery. "You—Y-you're projecting."

Yang's smirk still lingered in the same self-assured way as she shrugged noncommittally. "Maybe," she offered. "But can you blame me? I mean, you're the one who came up with the idea. It's not like I'm gonna ignore the thought of you in a bikini, and it's not like you are, either. Besides, I didn't hear you say no!"

An immense effort was undertaken within the conscious of Blake Belladonna, one which recalled prior stories she had read, suitable lists she had memorized and recited at a later date, and she even went so far as to remember a few regretful moments from her darker decade. Unfortunately, the enthused pull by the surrounding arm and the lascivious singsong in the blonde's voice made the intended imagery a nigh inevitability. To counteract this enabling atmosphere, Blake made a scoffing noise and shrugged off her partner's grip before increasing her pace and leaving behind a chuckling Yang.

She was not particularly offended by the comment—it was characteristic of Yang to enjoy these teasing remarks, no matter how salacious, and Blake had known this fact even before asking her out—but she was certainly not amused, either. While the crude joke did help distance the Faunus from her direr thoughts rather effectively, the subject matter and the suggestiveness of it all was utterly disconcerting and not a small bit uncomfortable. Blake was not hurt by the experience because this was Yang being her playful self, but to say that she was accepting of this sort of advance would be untrue. It is not to say that she did not find her partner physically attractive by any means (rather, she did, but she admired Yang to such an extent that admitting it, even at this point in their relation, would be perhaps a bit too forward), but she did want to mend the gap still yet between them before moving on to more…affectionate matters.

Frankly, Blake felt that she deserved an apology. However, this was not the prideful Blake of weeks ago who believed that she was perennially in the right, but this was instead the logical, rational Blake who had been lost amongst the sea of agitators. She deserved an apology from Yang because what the blonde said had been entirely inappropriate for the situation. It was this sort of mistake which had taken them into the crowd in the first place, and if Yang did not learn the severity of impulsivity, then further mistakes of the kind would only become more commonplace.

Fortunately, as she stood cross-armed at what was believed to be a sizable distance from her partner, Blake would eventually be surprised by a sudden hug from behind. A grinning kiss warmed her cheek and would remain there until the blonde's giggles subsided. This action—this disarming emotion—inspired a reluctant smile of Blake's own despite her recent displeasure, and this only caused Yang's to widen as her lips detached. Out of the corner of her eye, Blake saw Yang staring back at her. "Hey," the blonde began began as if nothing wrong had happened, "you know I was only teasing you, right?"

Blake sighed. "Yeah."

"I probably went a little overboard, didn't I?"

"Yeah."

"Okay. I admit, I got a bit ahead of myself and didn't really think of what it'd do to you, so, I'm sorry. Well, mostly. That thought's gonna come up again eventually and it's not something we're going to be able to run from forever. Doesn't matter if it's two days or two years from now, but we're gonna have to cross that bridge at some point."

"I know," Blake said. "It's just…"

"You were scared?" Yang finished, causing a nod from her partner. "Yeah, I'd imagine you are. Everyone is at first, and I'm not going to rush you anymore. If you want me to stop, I will. Whenever you wanna cross that bridge, though, I'll be ready, but I'm absolutely fine with you wanting to wait."

"Yang, can we stop talking about—"

"Oh! Right. Sorry about that." The blonde gave a sheepish laugh and planted yet another kiss on her partner's cheek, easing the discomfort once more. She then moved to Blake's side but did not place an arm over her shoulder or take her hand in her own. Oddly enough, she stood a small distance away from the Faunus but did not seem deterred in the least. "Yeah, we should probably change subjects before it gets even more awkward, huh?" At this, she began to move forward and motioned for Blake to follow. "Come on. You can pick what we talk about next. I don't really mind."

It was strange not having an arm pull Blake forward. She found that until Yang had motioned for her to move, she seemed content to stay still. However, before an inference is made towards indoctrinated demureness or reliance on another's opinion or help, the frequency of physical contact over these past two months and the enjoyment thereof should be taken into account, leading one to believe that rather than a dog's anticlimactic anticipation from a whistle blow, Blake's current reaction was more so suited to simple uncertainty in this unembraced state—there was no subconscious dilemma on the Faunus' part, simply discomfort. She followed soon after and caught up to her girlfriend's side, not exactly knowing what to do with her hands when they were not attached to Yang, leaving them to fold impatiently before her as she walked.

For a moment, she found herself distracted by the jubilant couples strolling nearby who walked similarly to how she and Yang were now positioned, but even their apparent contentedness seemed alien. Blake was not as vocal about her emotions as those others on the promenade were, and this left her affection to show through her physicality in most cases. Being separated from Yang, no matter how small the distance, felt wrong.

Still, Yang had asked for a different conversation, and leaving this silence to linger only caused the awkwardness to mount between them. As such, Blake chose the topic that held the most weight in her mind despite how dark it was. "Yang?" she asked, receiving a happy hum in response. "Can we talk about…the argument?"

The smile Yang held softened substantially, moving from a delighted grin to something more sincere. "Sure, kitten," she said, "but let's wait until we have some privacy for that kind of thing. If you want, we can talk about it over dinner."

"I'd…I'd like that."

"Great! It's not too much farther."

A small period of silence took hold of the two as Yang continued on her merry way and Blake simply took in the bustling energy around her, but a sudden thought grabbed the Faunus' attention and caused her to inquire, "Yang? Where exactly are you taking me?"

"The sushi restaurant I mentioned a while ago! I probably should have told you ahead of time, huh?"

"Perhaps," Blake said, "but I can't say I'm opposed to the idea."

"I had a feeling that'd be the case. That's why I went ahead and made reservations." Blake raised an eyebrow to this and Yang apparently noticed. "Yeah, I know, it's not a very 'me' thing to do, but I didn't want our night to be ruined again. By having a reservation ready to go, I'm probably less likely to freak out over not getting on the list." The blonde then grimaced. "That, and Weiss kinda made the suggestion after hearing what went on with the protest."

"Oh? It sounds like she didn't just suggest the reservation."

With a sigh, Yang explained, "Yeah, after calling me a big, dumb idiot for about half an hour, she told me I couldn't take chances with you like the one I did. She said, and I quote, 'You moron. If you're going to go out to dinner, make sure everyone is in agreement beforehand. Otherwise, your plan is going to fail like all of your other pigheaded schemes.' It was a bit harsh, but she was right. Whenever you or Ruby or even Weiss plan something, it always seems to work, but whenever I fly by wire, everything just falls apart." She laughed shortly. "It happened when I was eight and I took Ruby out and it happened again in front of the music store. Some things never change."

"Well, that's not always a bad thing," Blake assured. "Perhaps you fly by wire occasionally, but it doesn't mean you're a bad person because of it. Honestly, Weiss can be overly cruel with the things she says, and I think that was one of the instances where she was."

The blonde shook her head and smiled over at her partner. "Thanks, Blake. I'm sorry about being all melodramatic and stuff."

"Don't be." The Faunus returned the smile with one of her own. "I think we've earned the right to be melodramatic after all we've gone through. Maybe we can't be that way around others, but I won't judge you if you need to air your grievances."

A low chuckle emanated from the exuberant youth, bringing her expression back up to the genuine happiness she had held before. Her eyes burned in the way they so often did for Blake and the grin she sported seemed primed to explode with elation. "Did I ever tell you how much I love you? 'Cause you really are the best, kitten."

"Thank you." Another blush burned across the Faunus' cheeks, this one more enjoyable than the previous. "I love you, too, and I…I didn't mean to yell at you. I shouldn't have said what I did and I'm sorry."

"Hey, it's all right. It's no big deal. You've already apologized enough as it is and I can't even blame you for it, to be honest. I think it was that whole protest that caused you to act that way, so they're really the ones to blame. And besides, we said we'll talk about it when we get to the restaurant." She winked at her partner. "You think you can hold off on the negativity for a bit? No offense, but—"

"I know," Blake interrupted. She had not been insulted by this plea for positivity and she did understand the merits of not making everything center around conflict. Truthfully, while she did want to discuss the rift and their argument to such a degree that recovery might find them both, Blake understood Yang's need for levity and she admittedly craved those past days of summer as well. For this, and to ensure that no offended undertone may have been construed from her response, Blake found a gloved hand and captured it in her own. "You're right," she said. "We can't allow this situation to consume us."

A by this point long-lost feeling of relief washed over the Faunus as the fingers between her own clenched softly and surely, communicating the blonde's content and assuring Blake that everything would certainly be all right between them. Yang did not say anything, choosing instead to simply smile at her partner and the many people they passed. In most cases, those others who now retired from the darkening beach or those who strolled along in similar fashion returned the gesture, distancing themselves from practically everyone else the young partnership had unfortunately come in contact with over the course of this season. Perhaps it was the population's genial disposition or perhaps it was the renewed contact with a tentative relation, but Blake felt happy in this moment. Truly, her remorse had passed and now the only priorities were of eventual apology and current affection.

As the sun set on this still yet promising day and as the storm clouds on the horizon blackened and crawled, a strange sense of completeness affected the Faunus. But this was no sense of relationship quality or personal fulfillment. Rather, this was a feeling of jubilation, of bliss, but it was concurrently a feeling of fear and necessity. In Yang's presence and at her side, Blake felt warm and loved but she also knew that mistakes could be made and that these mistakes could be ruinous to her newfound peace. This did scare her, of course, as it would anyone else, but it also made her feel alive in a way. Beside Yang, she could find safety and positivity, but she could also counteract the wonts of her subconscious and stray from the darkness of the White Fang.

Yang had not done anything wrong amid the protest. Perhaps she had acted rashly at its outset and perhaps she had let her temper get the better of her, but nothing in the reprimands given were agreeable in the least. Blake was sorry and she would make it a point to communicate this over dinner. The blonde was too valuable to break or change like her partner had on that unfortunate night. Blake's spirit would remain strong and unburdened by past atrocities for the sake of her girlfriend, and this had been Yang's goal in assisting her. Now was the Faunus' chance to return the favor and ensure that what had happened two weeks ago would never happen again.

* * *

Night settled quickly over the kingdom of Vale, its quiet arms finally descending upon the last remaining hues of orange and red and in turn relinquishing its starlight and shadow for the city's own bloom. One such light which brightened the now overhead clouds was a seaside shack of sorts, one set upon the sands of the bay shore and one which exuded a warmth and light that could only be described as jovial or frenetic. The young couple would already be seated here, sitting not inside the bustling bamboo construct which Blake had initially written off but instead beneath one of the neighboring cabanas amongst numerous other couples on this warm summer's night. A storm was coming and everyone here knew it, but none of the patrons seemed to mind and instead chose to enjoy the balmy breeze and the ambient waves and the grinning company who sat across the table while it all lasted.

Yang smiled brilliantly, her expression illuminated by the central lantern upon their table, and it was this emotion which reduced her Faunus partner to the hesitant child she had been at the beginning of this summer. Eyes which could burn a fervent hue focused solely on the girl in black, an insistent lilac which, against all odds of spontaneity and facetiousness, favored Blake with apparent warmth. Conversation had hardly occurred, existing only to escape the onset moments of their seating, but now Blake was content to simply pass the time by staring back at the blonde. She felt important under Yang's gaze, human almost. The shining orbs dared not veer above or below her partner's amber, choosing to regard her date as Blake Belladonna rather than a White Fang member, a Faunus, or even a girl who had attacked her scant weeks ago.

Within those lilac eyes was love—it was home, family, and all the comforts of respite and care that had been lost with the childhood affiliation. Blake felt terrible about what had been said and wished it could all be taken back, but time had slipped by and now that moment was gone. Now she could only move forward and apologize. Somehow, Yang seemed ready for Blake's mood-breaking speech, a quick smirk forming at the corner of her lips and a glimmer shining in her eye that seemed to say, "Don't be afraid."

Blake sighed and lost her happy expression, reluctantly exchanging it for something more somber and suitable. "Yang," she carefully began, "what I said to you, what we can't seem to bring ourselves to talk about, I meant it." The blonde's smile still shone above the small lantern, but a clear disturbance crossed her features. Blake could not fault her, however, because this had been an admittedly abrupt start. She figured that small talk would only inhibit their recovery, and if bluntness was to be the means of achieving understanding, then Blake would continue, undeterred. "I didn't mean to hurt you by saying it and I certainly didn't mean to lose my temper over the matter, but I'd be lying if I said that it wasn't what I was thinking at the time. I don't want us to break up, I really don't, but I can't ignore that outburst."

"I don't want us to break up, either, Blake; not over something like that. Maybe, I don't know, if I do something wrong to you or really hurt your feelings, then I'd kinda understand, but—"

"Yang, you did not hurt my feelings."

The blonde hummed in trepid acceptance, her perennial façade falling away to show her true emotion and frown. "Yeah, but I still acted stupidly. I know what you said about not comparing myself to others, and that's not what I'm doing right now, but sometimes I think I'm really not smart enough for you. I mean, take the crowd for example. For some reason, I had a schedule to keep and I didn't want to ruin our date by not following it. I wasn't ready to wait another twenty minutes. I just walked right through them and dragged you with me, and that was wrong—_I_ was wrong."

"Perhaps," the Faunus said, looking down to the still empty table before her. "But I was wrong, too. You tried to help me on so many different occasions, but I only saw it as aggression. I sided with the protesters and the White Fang instead of you. No matter how long I've been away from the organization, I just can't seem to let go of their beliefs. I don't want to believe they're a lost cause, but that crowd and my behavior toward you told me exactly that." She looked back up to Yang. There was no argument to be had here, no discussion of who was right and who was wrong. There was simply acceptance and recovery. "Yang, you know that I can't run from my memories, right?"

"You mean you can't put it all in the past?"

Blake shook her head. "No, I can, and I'm really trying to, but no matter how far I run and no matter how much you help me, the memories are always going to come back. As much as I hate it, I'm always going to have an irrational fear of thunder, but I don't get to fear it like other people do. I don't get to scream and run for help; I have to cry and run away from it. Memories will always come back to me, Yang, because it's what I deserve for the mistakes I've made. My memories will chase me, not the other way around. I don't like it and I'm desperately trying to change it, but it's hard."

"And that's why you yelled at me? Is that why you're saying you meant the things you said?"

"I'm sorry, Yang, but that's what it seems like."

It was then that an unexpected response came from the golden girl. Rather than frowning and seeming disappointed as Blake had anticipated, Yang smirked almost smugly and focused this expression on her girlfriend, confusing the Faunus and oddly raising her mood. "Well, if that's all it is, then we can work around it—you know, except for the thunder part, but everything else is fair game for improvement, right?" This assurance allowed Blake a fleeting smile of her own. "So, what were you thinking when you yelled at me? What did the memories tell you to do?"

Unfortunately, it was not as easy as Yang made it sound to parse the emotions of any time, much less of an argument that had occurred so long ago. Still, Blake would attempt to sort out her own sentiments from those the White Fang had instilled in her so to give Yang her answer. "It's…complicated. Perhaps I should start with the 'smothering' part."

"If you want. I mean, if you wanna tackle that one now instead of something smaller, go right ahead. I'm all ears."

With a sigh, Blake began. "When I was in the White Fang, when I was…I'm not sure. Eight? Nine? Regardless, sometime in the earlier years of my affiliation, I was frequently castigated for wanting attention. At the time, I was only a child and I still wasn't used to being away from home, so I naturally tried to emulate what home felt like. Unfortunately, every attempt failed and members of the White Fang would often find me crying for my parents at night. One time, I asked my commanding officer if I could go back and see my mom and dad for a while and everyone around me just laughed. I didn't need attention in the way most people seek it, I just needed a parental figure around to help me when I was lost.

"Unfortunately, one never came. I had a commanding officer, I had a mentor, and I had others in my cell who took care of each other, but none of them knew how to raise a child. I was just a kid at the time and they all told me to grow up. They told me to grow thicker skin because everyone around me would be sharpening their wits and growing bolder by the day. That's the primary reason why I retreated to literature, but that still did not solve the problem of not having a parent or friend.

"A person—both human and Faunus alike—needs certain things in order to live. The White Fang offered me the most basic necessities such as food and water and also safety. For all intents and purposes, I was a soldier and they provided for me like one, but I was also a child and I needed someone to latch on to for support."

"But no one came," Yang ascertained.

"No, no one ever came. I was told to grow up and I did just that. I became a recluse, I lost all interest for social interactions since I knew I would only be picked on, and I lost my conversational ability. Everything that I needed to know came from either my mentor who taught me how to fight and fend for myself or from my books which gave me morality, however skewed it might have been at the time. I grew accustomed to being alone and I grew to like it. But in order to survive, a person also needs belonging and friendship and, well, love. At the time, I thought that I could skip these things and move on to become the best White Fang member I could."

"So, because you didn't have anyone to talk to, you became self-sufficient," surmised Yang. A morose chuckle was the blonde's response to this understanding. "I know that feeling. When me and Ruby lost mom and when dad stopped talking, I was the only one left who could take care of her. It was rough not having anyone to relate to at the time, but Ruby kept me going. I can't imagine what it was like for you, though. I'm guessing that's why you felt smothered by me?"

Although Yang would frequently claim to be dull in comparison to her partner, Blake could not help but admire her perception. Yes, this was the truth, and Blake could not have said it better herself. She nodded. "I was used to being alone for so long that your help didn't sit right with me for some reason. I…I didn't trust you when we first became partners, but I gradually grew to accept your friendship. A relationship, however, was something else.

"I didn't like it when you bought me things. Honestly, I still don't. I believe that everything you do is sincere and I don't doubt your motives at all, it's just that I still somewhat feel the need to take care of myself by myself. I know it's irrational—all of this is—but it's what makes sense to me.

"Yang, when I said that you were smothering me, I was scared because I didn't know how to react. The majority of my routines learned from the White Fang are all but gone now. I'm speaking more frequently, I'm finding companionship more ideal than solitude, and I'm sharing a bed with you now. Yang, you're single-handedly supplying me with the sense of belonging that I lacked in the organization, and because of that, you've made me realize how messed up I really was. When the crowd said what they did and got inside my head, I saw this relationship as weakness when it really wasn't. I suppose there is still merit in self-sufficiency, but I shouldn't fear help the way I do. I'm sorry for saying that you were smothering me. Perhaps at one point you were, but you aren't anymore, and you certainly weren't smothering me when we were fighting the crowd."

The mood between them had sunken to something of a pensive state, leaving the happiness they had shared earlier to be both a memory and an eventual goal. Currently, however, Yang simply nodded as she took in this information. Blake had known that this mood would be set for the occasion and she assumed Yang had as well, but she doubted either of them was prepared for the candidness of these apologies.

Fortunately, the couple was interrupted by the sifting sounds of an approaching waiter in the sand who carried their previously ordered entrée. Both girls smiled at him as best they could while he neared and set two small plates in front of them before placing a small wooden boat in the center of the table, filled with a variety of rolls and fish of all shapes, sizes, and colors. Just as quickly and as quietly as he arrived, he left.

Yang flashed her smile Blake's way before helping herself to the shared meal. It was apparent that she understood the severity of her partner's apology, else she would have lacked reverence and grinned throughout the story, but she was Yang, after all, and would continue to have an energy about her that was both undeterred and entirely calming. She still looked to be in thought as she moved a few pieces of sushi to her plate, but she fortunately did not seem upset by Blake's words. This allowed the Faunus to smile as she, herself, moved a couple pieces to her own plate.

Yang would eventually sigh out of assumed contentment. Whether this was caused by the food, the atmosphere, her own thoughts, or even Blake, the latter could not be sure. What was clear was that there must have been multiple thoughts running through her mind at once, causing her stare to leave her teammate and focus on the moonlit ocean beside them for a while as she ate. It would take a minute for her to articulate her thoughts appropriately, but when she was finally satisfied with what she planned to say, she would turn back to Blake and begin her own speech.

"Ruby used to say stuff like that, too. You know, 'You're smothering me!' and 'I can take care of myself.'" Oddly enough, a smile was her choice of emotion, a wistful affair that looked both at her partner and far beyond to a time long past. It showed acceptance of the apology (for which Blake was grateful), but it also showed an inner shadow, a question yet unanswered and now recalled by Blake's tale. "I mean, that's all part of growing up, right? If mom was still around, Ruby'd be doing the same thing to her, running away from hugs and all that."

She laughed. "Anyways, I think I understand what you're getting at. You're saying that being alone kinda became a habit and I'm breaking you of it, right?" In abbreviated terms, yes, this was an appropriate assumption. Blake nodded. "Yeah, I find that the problem with habits is that they don't go down without a fight. Like, when you try to break 'em, they just take hold over you one last time before they're really gone for good, but I guess an actual fight could go on because of it, too.

"I don't know. I've always taken care of Ruby like it's second nature, so I'm not even thinking twice when I'm spending money on you or something—it's just natural. I hope you know that I'm not trying to impress you or anything by doing stuff for you; I'm just taking care of you. And I can kinda get how that could be stifling at times, so I'll try to ease up a bit, but just like you have habits, so do I. I'm sorry if some of them get in the way."

"No, it's fine," Blake sighed. "I like your help. I enjoy being around you, Yang."

"And I enjoy being around you, too, kitten."

The two shared quick smiles, one sporting a smirk and the other a grin, as they silently came to terms with their own pasts. The word "smothering," during the argument, was now understood to be incorrect. Perhaps it could be said that Yang had made her partner uncomfortable after the protest, but even this would be false. Truthfully, the pain of Blake's memory was revealed mostly due to inadequate care for herself and an unawareness of what was morally right in the moment—she had reacted the way she did because she had honestly believed the protesters were justified. But now that Blake understood this and now that Yang was made clear of her intentions, the young Faunus could smile at their relationship's safety she now saw in their immediate future.

The two would dine in silence for a small while, simply delighting in the splendor they had denied themselves with heavy conversation. And though they were currently silent and respectfully could not bring themselves to laughter, there were no negative sentiments shared between them. There was still a sense of hesitation about their interactions, spurred by fear that another argument would break out (though it certainly would not), and as well there was more to say in regard to their now resolved dispute, but the young couple would revel in this peace while it lasted.

All things considered, Blake was enjoying herself. The last time she had eaten sushi was…well, she honestly could not remember. It did not feel as though it had been too long since the last time, but she could not remember an instance in the past year when she would have had the opportunity. Before then, she had almost always eaten alone, and sushi, to her, had been reserved for special occasions—of which there were not many at that time. Regardless, she was happy with Yang's choice. Though their moods were still on the dour side, the food was fresh and the scene was exquisite. In this current reflective state, Blake could not help but appreciate how far she had come from the dilapidated barracks and mess halls of the organization to almost nightly dates.

Yang did not bother looking at her food as she ate, instead staring off into the misty din and shifting swells in the shadows all the while, a glint clear in her eye which Blake watched, enraptured. They were thankfully still dating and had been for a couple months, so a small bit of staring admiration seemed innocuous enough from Blake's point of view. As such, she would cherish this peaceful expression which so contrasted the cold of weeks ago.

As the fire within the lantern set beside their sushi's boat danced in its confinement, so too did Yang's own, her lustrous lilac gleaning insight into her moving thoughts and concealed emotion. Though the primary points of Blake's attraction to this flaxen sight were her warmth of character and energy in motion, the Faunus would be lying if she claimed she did not find her partner physically attractive—in fact, she now flushed at the thought of how lucky she was to have this grinning figure as her own. Soon, the fire welling behind those lavender orbs would come to focus entirely on the dazed Faunus, resulting in a greeting smirk and a teasing wink from the former and a flustered, deepened blush from the latter.

"So," Yang said, an evident question on her mind as she knowingly changed the subject, "how is it? Better than the cafeteria's?"

Blake, still thrown off by being caught, was admittedly at a loss for what her partner was referring to. That is, she was oblivious until two simultaneous revelations hit her. Firstly and quite obviously, Yang was referring to their sushi. Secondly, Blake realized that the last time she had had sushi was at Beacon during a week when the cafeteria staff decided they would try their hands at new recipes. Needless to say, the attempt was faulty but admirable. Blake cleared her throat and as well any remaining hesitation of the previous mistake, and answered, "Definitely. I'm really enjoying the tuna rolls." A noise of fake surprise came from the blonde. Blake smiled. "How did you find this place?"

Yang paused, squinted, and waved off the question as quickly as she could. "Err, it doesn't really matter."

"Sounds like it does," the Faunus conjectured.

The blonde sighed in joking frustration. "Fine," she said. "It was a first date, I didn't really know the guy, but he was just about in love with me. I gave him a shot and he took me here, and I _really_ didn't expect that."

"He sounds sweet."

"Yeah, I guess. Probably. But he was a bit on the creepy side, too."

"Oh?"

"I mean, the guy didn't know how to talk to me at all, which is okay—I said I'd give him a pass for it—but he _kinda_ overcompensated. This place is nice and all, don't get me wrong, but this really is not first date stuff. This is like committed relationship stuff." Blake could not help but smirk at this. "That, and he sort of tried to act like a poet or something. He wasn't very good at it."

"How charming."

"Yeah, something like that."

As light-hearted as the memory may have been to Yang, it was obvious she did not wish to talk about it much longer. As such, Blake pulled a couple more rolls to her plate and asked, "So, is this place as good as you remember it being?"

This question evidently required some thought. A hum emanated from the blonde as she took a break from her meal. "Well, the food's still great. Me and Ruby used to go all over the place for sushi and never really found anything we liked, but then that guy showed up out of nowhere and showed me this. I can't say I'm upset about it. Though, when he took me here, it was in the middle of the day, so the service was shoddy and there was no one else around. Honestly, the place might have been emptier than Weiss' heart."

The Faunus calmly set down her chopsticks and moved to stifle a laugh. Yang watched with a self-satisfied smirk as her girlfriend simply shook her head and lightly giggled in lieu of anything uncharacteristically loud. Blake did not know why the remark was so funny to her—perhaps it was simply unexpected in their conversation or perhaps it was a thankful reprieve from the doubts and negativity over these past few weeks, but whatever the case, she laughed freely and genuinely at Yang's quip.

When Blake finally settled down from her impromptu fit, she was met with the expectant gaze from across the table. Yang seemed eager about something, potentially afraid, too, but the sheer energy radiating off of her was enough to remove the subtle chill of the briny breeze and warm Blake's concerned heart. Again, the Faunus cleared her throat in an attempt to restore her veneer of quietude, but before she could respond, Yang said, "I love you, Blake."

It was a sudden sentiment, and indeed it would be accepted, but it was met with an arched brow.

The blonde continued. "I don't think I tell you that enough, but I want to make sure you know. You're an awesome girlfriend and I'm lucky to be with you. You're the smartest person I know and the prettiest, too, and you're everything I could've ever wanted out of a relationship. I love you, Blake, and I want you to know that."

"Yang," the Faunus whispered, admittedly shocked by this candidness, even from such a source. "I…Why?"

"I don't want a repeat of what happened in the protest. I don't want there to be any confusion about whose side I'm on. I'm on your side, Blake, and I always will be. What you said after we got out of that crowd hurt, and I never want to make you say that again." Blake moved to counter this point and claim that it was the crowd which had spurred her aggression, but Yang continued. "No matter who you said caused you to yell, none of that would've happened if I actually thought about what I was doing. I was dumb and I can freely admit that. You were telling me to not go and I didn't listen, and the end result was me causing you even more pain.

"Remember when I burned you in Sierra? How I got mad and you tried to calm me? Well, that hurt, too. I've taken the short end of the stick in too many relationships before this, so I know how badly that can hurt, and I never want you to feel insecure around me like I was around the others. I know I'm a hothead and I'm liable to lose my cool over something stupid, but no matter what, I love you. You and Ruby are the only things I have left, and she's moving on to greener pastures with Weiss.

"After the argument, I was afraid that I'd lost you or something, that I'd scared you off or hurt you in some way. I was scared that I'd taken your laugh away, that I'd made you mad enough to never smile again. I know you like to think that you're calm, cool, and collected and I know how everyone else thinks you're a loner, but that's not the Blake I know. You're awesome, Blake. You're super thoughtful and love giving hugs and once I get you talking, I just can't seem to stop you." The blonde smiled a wide, prideful smile. "And I love that about you. Yeah, you'd probably stay calm even when the world's about to blow up or something, but you'd check to make sure everyone's doing all right and then you'd check to see if we're doing the right thing. It doesn't matter to me if you're a Faunus or if you used to be White Fang or even if you're scared to do social stuff—all of that's what makes you who you are and I wouldn't have it any other way.

"But me?" Suddenly, her smile dissipated, causing Blake's own to lower in worry. "I'm as seen on TV, batteries not included. There's not much to me, Blake, I'm one-dimensional. I'm just a walking smile who knows how to fight Grimm. You're, like, amazingly talented at everything you do—Ruby and Weiss, too—and I'm just…" She shook her head. "I know I may act full of myself a lot of the time, but I'm really not. I'm just trying to survive like everyone else, trying to move from one fight to the next and keep my smile up. Ruby needs it, you need it, and even Weiss needs it sometimes, but I don't know what I need. I guess I'm just lost or something. I know I need you…and Ruby, but I don't know what else."

Part of Blake wanted to simply rush over and hold on to the blonde and supply her with all of the support that she silently seemed to ask for, but the rational side of her mind knew that this would be inappropriate, not only to their present locale, but to Yang's desires. Yang wanted to continue her speech and figure out exactly what was plaguing her own mind. Concurrently, Blake wanted to comfort her and see her smile again. Quickly, the Faunus would choose an action which would satisfy both of her dilemmas. "Yang," she soothed, "don't say that. You're not one-dimensional, not at all. If anything, you're the most interesting person I know and the most caring, too. Without you, our team would have fallen apart multiple times over. I doubt Ruby would be as great of a leader as she is if she didn't have your guidance growing up and I know for a fact that if you weren't there for me when we were chasing Torchwick, I could have gotten myself killed.

"All of us are lost, Yang—everyone on Remnant is—but it's okay if we don't know what we're doing or where we're going at the moment because if we continue working toward finding out, we'll eventually get wherever we need to be. You were the one to show me that. I'm still holding on to White Fang ideals for whatever reason, and I'm trying to stop, but I still don't know what to do, either. Just because you feel worthless doesn't mean you are.

"Look at what you've accomplished. You've single-handedly raised one of the best huntresses and leaders I've ever met and you managed to keep her from the darkness of the world. You took what you learned from making your weapons and made an entire motorcycle by yourself—not only that, but you built a gyroscope to replace a kickstand simply because you felt like it. You've held our team together by keeping the mood light and, well, you've changed my life, Yang. You create things, give them life. Maybe you don't feel accomplished, but everyone around you is consistently impressed. Even Weiss, who tells us both how different she is from you, knows your value, and Ruby wouldn't even be here without you. You aren't worthless and you aren't one-dimensional. You're strong, brave, and an incredible partner."

Yang sighed. "Well, it certainly doesn't feel that way, that's for sure." She shook her head. "Sorry," she said before returning to her food. However, the enthusiasm with which she previously ate was gone and now she had only the energy to prod the fish. "It's just," she attempted but stopped. Again she shook her head. "I know I'm not worthless. That's not my problem. My problem is that I'm going to become worthless."

"I don't understand," said Blake. "What do you mean? You're going to be a huntress in a few years and you'll always be a sister to Ruby. If anything, that's guaranteed worth."

Tapping her plate in apparent thought, Yang looked to struggle with this concept. What was believed to be an admission of care now seemed like a call for help, one that was rescinded by the blonde's silence and was thus made all the more necessary because of it. This was the same fear that arose with their return from Sierra, the same fear that shed light on the pain of separation. This was not a question of self-worth nor was it a confusion of purpose as she had stated, but rather it was an irrational knowledge that at some indeterminate point in her future, the fire of her being would become irrelevant and flicker out.

Proving this point, the blonde looked up to her partner, a sad smile prevailing over underlying positivity, and said, "I know that, Blake. I know I'm going to mean something to you all, but I'm worried about myself. I know it sounds selfish when I put it that way, but it's something I have to watch out for. Apathy runs in my family, and if something goes wrong, I'm liable to break down just like my dad did."

She sighed. "Blake, ever since my mom passed away and my biological mother left, my dad hasn't been the same. I've told you a few things about him before, like how he's always happy to surprise me and Ruby and how he's absorbed in his work at Signal, but he really isn't the same anymore. He…sort of stopped caring about everything. He'd bury himself in his work, stop taking me and Ruby out, and he lost touch with a lot of his friends. He stopped being a parent because he couldn't handle it—at least, that's what I think—and he left Ruby to me. I was eight and he told me to raise a girl by myself right after my mom died. And then he had the nerve to keep giving us rules even though he'd never enforce them."

"I'm sorry, Yang." Blake frowned. "I didn't realize you had that much trouble."

Yang sighed. "You know, it really wasn't that bad. I mean, my dad's still a great guy even if he's not entirely there anymore. He'd probably want to meet you and Weiss if he ever cared enough to get away from Patch, but I think that's a long ways off. A long, long ways off."

"Still, it sounds terrible. I'm sorry your family had to go through that."

"It's all right, Blake." An attempt was made on the blonde's part for a smile, but the resulting action was piteously telling of the trepidation that still lingered. "I know I'm not worthless. I just need to make sure that when Ruby has to leave, I'll be okay. I just don't want what happened to my dad to happen to me, so I'll have to be aware about it." She would pause and form a genuine smirk before concluding, "At least I'll have you by my side."

Though the sentiments of the present were still hovering above this conversation like buzzards ready to drop, the assurance was calming to a degree. Blake smiled back and allowed Yang to continue her meal. She was distressed quite obviously and had likely been this way for a while without Blake's awareness, but something about the way she moved, something about the way she frequently glanced up at the Faunus for affection as she ate like she had been starved, communicated that improvements were being made slowly, painfully.

Even still there was remaining pain which spawned from their argument and the words Blake had spat. It was likely that the argument would never be forgotten and it was doubtless that the hard feelings had not entirely passed. Perhaps now was the time for further apology and understanding, Blake reasoned. When next the blonde chose to glance at her partner, Blake made it a point to smile even wider than she usually did, hopefully communicating that she had something to say. Upon seeing this, Yang paused. "Yang, I'm sorry about what I said. I overreacted and I told you things I did not mean. Whatever I said to hurt you and cause these present feelings was horrible of me. You're not worthless and you will never be. It may not feel like it at times, but you are a tremendous help to everyone around you."

"I know," Yang responded with a whisper. "But I don't want to become my dad."

For this, Blake could only raise an eyebrow.

"He fell apart after everything happened. I really can't blame him for it, though, since it hurt me, too, but it was tough dealing with him after that. He'd start going into school earlier and earlier and come home way too late, and eventually it was like me and Ruby didn't even exist—it was like we were already lost causes." She made a small noise and set her chopsticks down, staring at them somberly. "I had to fight him about that part."

"You don't mean—"

"Punching and stuff? No, not fighting like that. Even if he was indifferent, he was still a hunter and my dad." She shook her head. "No, I had to yell at him because mom wasn't around to do that anymore. I had to tell him that just because he was in pain didn't mean that he could forget about Ruby. He used to walk her to school while I walked with my friends, but after everything happened, I had to bring Ruby with me because he started forgetting her. And then I had to learn how to cook because he started coming home too late and I had to take care of Ruby by myself. I was eight, Blake, and I had to yell at my dad because he wasn't doing a good enough job."

In an instant, Blake lost her appetite. She set her chopsticks down as well and watched as Yang composed herself with no outward expression. The story told was darker than expected—truthfully, disgusting—and hearing it only made the Faunus' heart ache more. Yang had considered Blake to be family, or at least she had said so in the crowd. Now Blake knew that she would be the second member of the blonde's tenuous family to betray her. Betrayal—that was what had caused her own reaction to Yang's assistance. In kind, Yang likely feared her partner's abandonment which would likely cause a collapse into told apathy and perhaps previously witnessed auric glaciation.

"Yang," Blake began quietly, "what I said to you was wrong. All of it was. I completely overreacted and I didn't realize how badly my words hurt you."

"It's all right, kitten. You didn't hurt me much. Really, I think I hurt myself more than anything else. I don't care about words—words are just that—but seeing you in pain, seeing Ruby be neglected or antagonized, that's what gets me mad. That's what hurts. I didn't want to yell at you, but I had to so I could keep you from hurting yourself. I don't think that was very big of me to do, but I needed you to snap out of it just as badly as you needed it. But when you said that you'd be fine without me, I thought I'd lost you. I'm glad it's not like that, but I thought it was, I really did.

"And I know you meant what you said and I know you didn't mean any harm by it. It's just that I wasn't strong enough." Yang sighed. "No, that's not it. I think we were both a mess after that protest."

"Yeah," Blake agreed simply.

"I don't want to become my dad, Blake. I don't want to break down after graduation. Really, I just want time to stop so we can all be kids forever. I want to be with you all summer and watch Ruby smile and come to understand that Weiss isn't going to hurt her. I want to go out on the town every day and see the side of you that nobody at Beacon could have ever believed. And then I want to come home every night and just fall asleep, knowing that you'll be with me when I wake up. I know that after this summer, things are going to be different, one way or another, and I don't want that. I just want what we have now, but forever."

"You're afraid of growing up?"

Yang shook her head. "I'm like you, Blake; I didn't get to have a childhood. I've always been irresponsible, but for some reason, I keep getting responsibilities put on me anyways. And I know that at any moment, all those responsibilities could fall on top of me and hurt everyone that I'm supposed to take care of—you, Ruby, dad." The blonde gave a haggard smile. Within her lilac orbs, however, a flame still smoldered, giving this expression a sense of hope that was focused entirely on her partner. "No, I'm not scared of growing up. I've already done that. I'm just looking for stability, something to keep me from breaking down."

Blake smirked back, hoping to rekindle that fire that so subtly burned and see the blonde shine as she often did. It hurt to see Yang in pain—it was unnatural for who she was—but Blake knew that this pain was good. She knew that this pain would only lead to recovery. "Well," she offered, "if you ever need help…"

"I know, kitten. I know you'll be there. You always are."

Again, Yang would return to her meal, her thoughts preoccupied with rebuilding her façade and her lips turned unwittingly downwards. It was a sad sight to the Faunus, one which only reminded her of her own lost appetite. The food had been excellent and worthy of praise to the blonde for picking such an establishment, but for the moment, praise would overpowered by darker sentiments.

Now that Yang had assumingly accepted Blake's apology, she appeared ready to move forward with their relationship. Unfortunately, continuation would perhaps be ill-mannered at this point in time. While Yang may have been comfortable with their current level of apology, the two had only grown doubtful of their own worth. Hearing of the blonde's life and her disdain for abandonment only made Blake increasingly aware of her infractions' results. She had threatened to leave Yang like so many others had before and she had claimed the blonde to be worthless when truly so many depended on her. This figure who now avoided conversation and chose instead to eat quietly was not a confident figure; it was not Yang. And yet this really was Yang, or at least the version of her that Blake had broken and driven into an unprecedented cold. She was not confident or brave at this moment; she was frightened, worried beyond reasonable measure. In a way, she was like the Blake who had recently escaped the White Fang and who doubted her decision profusely.

But the organization had been their problem all along. The White Fang had been the cause of most of the team's troubles over the past year, ranging from the incident at the pier to the unending recollections of a traumatized deserter, and this trend looked only continue, regardless of their multiple defeats. The knowledge that Blake had aided them and, more recently, sympathized with their cause was telling of an already opposed indoctrination, and it was this indoctrination which had caused her to yell at Yang. The organization had torn Blake from her parents, exiled her from normal social interactions, taught her how to kill and how to lead others towards killing, and they continued to tear away at her newfound peace.

The goals of unification and equality were simply common sense to Blake. Humans and Faunus were only separated because of a single genetic trait, and even then, the two species spoke the same language, held the same standards, and looked largely similar. Job opportunities and general respect from one person to another should have been entirely equal under the duress of the larger impending Grimm War. Safety was a basic right to any civil being, regardless of biology. Unfortunately, these tenets were ubiquitous to neither society as a whole nor the current White Fang, leaving the world in petty turmoil over something morally simple. Blake fought for these ideals and the White Fang who she had believed would, too, but the longer she stayed with the organization and the longer she fought against them, the clearer it became that unity and equality were notions long past.

She still hoped that within the ranks of the organization there might be someone who remembered the creeds and ethics which guided them well, and she hoped that at some point in her future, she might find reason to argue on the side of the protest, but no longer would she be driven by this hope alone. Now her hope rested with Yang and with Team RWBY. Her hope was that, as a huntress, she could better the world through direct merits and counteract the toxic propaganda which had led her astray. Moreover, her hope was that their most recent argument and all its causes and effects might be washed away by the tides of change and forgiveness. Perhaps she could stand beside Yang in the years to come and perhaps they could reverse the stressors which acted from their pasts. Perhaps Blake could learn to move on with her life and learn to be brave and confident like Yang. But in order to do so, she realized, she needed to take the first step.

Yang still seemed distressed, obviously concerned about the basis for their relationship. It was likely that she believed Blake hated her despite the assurances towards the exact opposite. The blonde had lost too many and had been burned the same, so to hurt her even further was simply vile. She and Blake were kindred spirits bound by loss and their searches for happiness. Together, they found peace. Unfortunately, it had been the White Fang and their collective pasts which now pulled them apart. For this, Blake sighed wearily as she finally came to terms with what she needed to say before reaching across the table to find Yang's hand.

Immediately, the blonde ceased all movements and looked to her partner with saddening fear. With a single brush atop her knuckle by a caring thumb, this expression thankfully relaxed to expectant patience. Blake observed the cold in her teammate's hand and knew that an inner storm raged on in the blonde's mind. She needed reassurance, and frankly so did Blake. The Faunus sighed, gripped her girlfriend's hand for support, and began. "Yang," the girl in reference met the uncertain amber gaze, "I…I think I'm done with the White Fang. I think I'm done with them forever."

Though the blonde did not truly smile, she certainly appeared to. The cold of her hand vanished for the characteristic warmth and the infectious energy which Blake loved dearly. "You…you mean you aren't going to go back to them?"

Blake gripped the hand tighter, validating her own promise and warming Yang in kind. "Yeah. I believe so. I've waited my entire life for them to be the good guys again. I fought alongside them in the hope that if ever their path was made clear, it would be easier for them to do the right thing. But now I know that they are lost and will never find themselves again. The White Fang of my childhood is gone now and there's no use waiting for them to come back. I need to move on, Yang. I shouldn't cling to the past and its mistakes, and though it's difficult to do, I think I'm ready.

"No, I won't return to the White Fang, even if they do decide to reform. My time with them is over and going back would be wrong. I have too many bad memories about my time and I'd rather not subject myself to that pain again." The Faunus smiled, proudly and encouragingly. "I'm with you now, and Ruby and Weiss. I'll change the world at all of your sides and I'll be there for you whenever you need me."

A smile fluttered at the corner of Yang's lips, appearing and disappearing in rapid succession as she took in this information. "You'd do that for me?"

Blake nodded. "Absolutely. You mean too much to me for anything else. I'm sorry about our argument and I regret everything I said. I promised that I'd never leave you, and now I'm certain that I can fulfill that agreement. No protest or terrorist group will stand in our way. You're the best friend I've ever had, Yang, and the most important thing in my life. I'm sorry I ever doubted you, and I'll never leave you again."

The response Blake was given was that of a nod and a smile, one in the latter regard which was observably strained and uncertain until a punctuating squeeze to the blonde's hand made clear the Faunus' convictions. At this, Yang's smile widened considerably and she squeezed back. "I believe you," she said. "Thanks, Blake."

The Faunus' expression softened while Yang's own grew. It seemed as though recovery would be an inevitable effect to her apology, not only for the blonde, but for herself as well. With her own words, a weight of significant memory had been lifted and now the fog of their future seemed to clear, defining the radiant path set before them and the golden end they might reach. As the fire in the lantern flickered in the wind, a veritable hearth burned within Yang's grinning eyes. She was happy—happy to live, happy to be of assistance, and happy to be in Blake's company—and all of this emotion was communicated through her ensnaring irises and affectionate warmth. Though Blake tried to pull her hand away, Yang held tight, a need for her partner evident in her mirth. The Faunus accepted and held tight, too, sending back her reason and knowledge that would assure Yang that they would be all right together.

Their argument was over. Memories would linger and pains would exist, but the memories would become benchmarks and the pains critiques. A fantastic light illumined the darkness of Blake's time-torn heart and as well assuaging shadows settled the fears of Yang's over-enthusiastic mind. The sushi had been forgotten and Blake's appetite repaired, and now all they could do was thank each other with silent stares and minor ministrations. The White Fang was gone from their lives, they were still together, and Yang knew Blake was sorry. Truly, this was amazing.

Minutes innumerable would pass the two by as Blake found herself giddily enthralled by the lilac orbs which reacted in kind. Between them, all sense of reality was gone, the crashing waves and light chatter acting as but a backdrop to their own devices. Life had never been about either girl due to responsibilities and obligations taking precedence over personal happiness, but now Blake felt free. She felt as if the entire universe was fit to accommodate herself and Yang—a binary system of balanced light and shade around which the whole of human creation revolved for their selfish needs. But this was fine, this selfishness. This selfishness was love, and it was this love which told the two of their worth. The Faunus who had fought and lost, who had run away continually, was now home and found the comfort she had set out for. The blonde who had given her life to support those without meaning, those without joy, without even a second of hesitation now found her own meaning and happiness which had osmotically diminished. Together, they were happy, resulting in a glint in the blonde's eye and a flutter in the Faunus' heart.

Eventually, the waiter would return, silently interrupting the couple and in turn causing Yang to blush. However, Blake neither paid him any heed nor worried about why the blonde blushed, instead admiring the beautiful sight that she could call her own. Even flustered by probable surprise, Yang was able to afflict Blake with a longing for affection which had previously not existed. She wanted to hold Yang close and claim her as her own, but Blake would be content to simply watch her pay the man.

When Yang turned back to her girlfriend, the brilliant blush faded and a more confident expression came about. She smirked. "Whatcha looking at?"

She was attempting to fluster Blake as well, her show of supposed weakness apparently requiring emulation, but Blake would not budge. Instead, the Faunus smirked back, her expression less teasing than it was elated. "You know exactly who I'm looking at."

Upon realizing that teasing would not work in this present moment, Yang moved for open exuberance, grinning widely and proudly. "You bet I do!" The two then exchanged low chuckles as the waiter promptly returned and handed Yang her receipt. She briefly flashed her smile at him and they exchanged thank-yous before she returned her attention to Blake. "Hey, kitten? Before we head home, there's something I want to do first."

"Okay," Blake assented.

"Wait. Don't you want to know what it is first?"

Blake shook her head. "I'll find out eventually, won't I? Either way, I see no protests in our vicinity, so I doubt we're in any danger—well, any _real_ danger." She knew Yang had a scheme in mind that had the same miniscule slant of irrationality that Blake had grown to accept. Regardless of what the plan entailed, Blake would accept unconditionally because this was Yang she was dealing with.

"You really are the best, Blake." The blonde laughed to herself. "Shall we?"

Without another word, the two stood, hands still intertwined and happiness positively radiating from their appearances. To Blake's limited surprise, Yang did not lead her towards the restaurant's accepted exit nor the esplanade and Bumblebee, but instead the blonde moved outwards, away from the cabana under which they sat and towards the shore.

With her one free hand, Yang began to unbuckle her boots, causing Blake to roll her eyes and immediately realize what had been planned. They were heading towards the water and that was all she needed to know. Whatever specifics Yang intended for the nearing tide, they were undoubtedly playful and entirely impulsive, but Blake had assented and she truthfully did not want to go back on her word. It could be fun, she reasoned. There was bound to be a rough night ahead with the storm on the horizon, so perhaps a bit of late-night frivolity could lessen the impending impact.

Through the low blanket of grey, the moon did not shine, yet a light was cast by the warm glow of the restaurant which brightened the nearby sand. Blake did not need this light to see the wash of the waves crawl quickly closer or to know that a storm was on the horizon. This light was for Yang, the girl who had braved the shadows and had come out exhilarated. By the time the blonde had forsaken her shoes, the chatter of the cabanas and the bustle of the service was overpowered by the breaking of the waves. With childlike glee, Yang abandoned her socks and left them in a haphazard pile behind her. It was strange, but in seeing her this happy and knowing that their argument was over, Blake felt compelled to do the same. She shook her head. No, she felt enthused to do the same and had given her word.

Suddenly, Yang felt her partner's hand leave her grip. She looked back to the Faunus, frightened by the mere thought of disagreement, but thankfully she found that Blake was retrieving the scattered belongings and was removing her own as well. The girl in black smiled and waved her on, saying that she would only be a minute—a fact that was somewhat of a relief.

The blonde then gazed out at the ocean and moved forward, undeterred. The shadowy blackness that echoed onto the horizon was a daunting sight indeed which inspired a sense of awe and could easily make a person realize her relative insignificance in this big world inundated by war and hatred. However, Blake was not mad at her and they were still together, so everything would be all right. Truthfully, the scope of the ocean and the world beyond were not her primary concerns as much as her own indecision was. The shocking cold of the bay's water was able to calm and distract her mind for the most part, but even still her thoughts raced.

A million questions surged endlessly throughout the blonde's mind. Considerations as to the hows and whys and whats pertaining to the impending speech and question bounded uncontrollably, leaving her panicked beneath her façade. How would she word it? Was now the right time? What would Blake say? Would they argue if she said "no?"

Yang waded further out until she could feel the ebbing pull of the world and the forceful push of its tide wash away all of her doubts. It was dark out, similar to how her thoughts were at that moment, but it was also peaceful and quiet, settings that Blake had taught her to enjoy. How she loved that girl. Where there had once been no assistance or gravity, Blake was there to calm her and provide reason when emotions ran amok. She was a steadfast ally and a force of moral righteousness. She was a friend like no other and an inspiration to Yang's conscience. She was a strong warrior, a brilliant mind, and a beautiful Faunus—it was no doubt that Yang would ask. Now the dilemma rested in Blake's eventual hands as to whether she would accept. This thought alone elevated a heart rate and hastened one's breathing, and though the sand and water cooled her mind, cold feet was Yang's current predicament.

Suddenly, she found a hand entwine with her own and a smiling Faunus standing proudly by her side. Those amber gems which had meant the world now glistened in that adorable way they did, causing every worry and doubt in Yang's mind to simply vanish. She made her decision.

It was a curious expression that Yang held. She looked as if she was smiling, but her lips turned downwards into something of a frown. She seemed contemplative but at the same time assured of herself. Perhaps this was hesitance, some lingering fear from their argument? It was doubtful that this was the case, but Blake leaned against her arm regardless and sighed at the warmth she was met with.

It was calm out here amidst the surf. The wind was tepid and perilous, evident of the approaching storm, but it was also soothing in a way when compared to the water's cold. It felt good to be here, beside Yang and at the beach, even if this visit was not going as expected. She had imagined a trip to this location would include the whole team as would be characteristic of her assumptions for a summer break, but she would accept this intimate situation nevertheless. After all, Yang's plan had resulted in something vaguely dangerous but altogether relaxing. Standing beside her in the moving swell, feeling the sediment and cold lave past their legs, Blake knew that the world was against them and that they were against the world. Looking out into the infinite darkness before them which even night vision could not penetrate inspired awe at the daunting tasks ahead and the incomparable triumph they would together reach. Blake smiled. A storm was coming and she stood with Yang—there was nowhere else she would rather be.

A threatening growl rumbled in the distance. Even before the phobic effects could take hold, Blake felt a comforting squeeze to her hand. "It's all right, kitten," Yang assured, staring at the faraway disturbance. "Just look at it. It's no harm from here. It's just beautiful."

Blake nodded and forced herself to gaze at the storm. At the edge of what was believed to be the horizon, a flurry of lights gamboled across the clouds. Arcs of yellow and orange and flashes of white lit the water in an entrancing show, yet it was the thunder thereafter and the quiet snarls which the lights did produce that frightened the Faunus. She did not wince, however, because Yang was here and the White Fang was gone. She did, admittedly, lean closer into her partner's form, but she continued to stare without hesitation at the source of her fear.

"You mean a lot to me, Blake," Yang would eventually whisper, planting a kiss beside the Faunus' traits. "You mean the world. When you came into my life, I thought you would be just like…I thought you'd be dull. But I don't think I've ever been more wrong in my life. When you asked me out, I nearly had a heart attack, I was so happy. Every day since then has been the best day of my life and right now is the best time I've ever had. It's all because of you, Blake. You're seriously the smartest person I know, even more than some of the professors. You talk about stuff I can't even begin to understand, but you explain it so well that I can get mad alongside you or excited when you're happy.

"You've got a great head on your shoulders, too. You're more stubborn than I am about some things, but you manage to be in the right about it most of the time. You know why someone's doing something wrong and how it's going to hurt someone else, and that's really incredible that you can care for people like that. I can only take care of Ruby, and even then, I'm not too great of a sister—first I let her get kidnapped and then I went off on Weiss for liking her. But you? You're fighting for an entire people and making sure they can live the lives they want. That's…that's noble, Blake."

The blonde then laughed lowly, drawing the watchful gaze of her partner. "And you're the cutest thing ever. Every time you smile, you make my heart stop. Every time you laugh, all those butterflies inside me just…I don't know, explode? That might not be the most romantic thing ever, but that's what it feels like." She shook her head. "Whenever I can stand beside you or have you in my arms, it's like nothing else matters and we'll be kids forever. Time stops when I'm around you, Blake. You really have been the highlight of my life, and I just want to return the favor in any way I can. I love you, Blake Belladonna, and I…"

Yang then paused to look through her jacket's pockets. Her search was initially calm, as though she were at ease with her action despite the bead of sweat running down her forehead, but as she continued her search, her movements became quickly panicked. It seemed as if something was missing with the way she was rummaging about herself. Every pocket on both her jacket and belt was tried until eventually she gave up and released a frustrated groan. "Yang?" Blake would ask to this. "What's wrong? Are you missing something?"

With a dejected sigh, the blonde shook her head. "No, it's nothing," she mumbled. "I'm just making sure I didn't lose my key."

She was lying, Blake believed. About what, however, the Faunus could not be sure. Regardless, the absence of a house key was still a troubling matter, even if the statement was a blatant cover-up. "Well, did you find it?"

"Yeah," she grunted.

Something was going on with her, but it did not seem as if the problem was readily hurting her. Rather, she was simply disappointed in herself, therefore leaving this problem to be a minor inconvenience in a time of happiness. As such, Blake caught the blonde's reddish gaze with a sympathetic smile before she leaned upwards and pecked her cheek. "Whatever's going on, Yang, I'm sorry about it. I love you, too, and I promise I'll never leave you."

Yang would sigh one last time before she brought her expression to a genuine smile. "Yeah, I know you will, kitten. You're great like that." Blake leaned into her shoulder, tucking her head under the blonde's chin and finding her sincere warmth again. "Thanks for everything, Blake."

The two would continue to stand there, simply staring off into the void of shadow and flashing lights as the tide moved out and the storm moved in. Thunder would be a distant occurrence but one Blake would keep in mind. However, her attention was focused solely on her girlfriend who she had wronged so grievously two weeks ago. There would be scars, of course, but it had been their first argument and there were bound to be more in their future. But that did not matter now. No, all that mattered now was Yang's presence and the White Fang's permanent absence. Both girls harbored pain alone, but when they were together—when they stood at the foot of a storm and against the world—there was nothing but joy. The storm was coming; it was inevitable. For the moment, however, these two would rejoice.

* * *

From blooming high rises to the darker squalors and from the sandy shores to the terminal boundaries, rain now fell on the city of Vale. Though the torrents had not arrived and though the thunder did not yet crash, the storm was doubtlessly here. Occasional gusts sent the rain to knock at the nearby windows and otherwise patter atop the roof, creating a false assumption of serenity and quiet. Still, the noise was presently comforting to the young Faunus who rested beneath her girlfriend's blanket with a book in hand. No longer did she frown at her novels as she had at Beacon. Instead, an invisible smile refused to leave her countenance at her most recent apologies, abandonments, and successes. She was content to be here, content to be under the protection of the sisters' home and in Yang's bed, simply waiting for the blonde to return.

However, as Yang finished her nightly routine, Blake would patiently enjoy the novel that she had neglected ever since their relationship began. It was odd how easily she had given up reading for Yang. Of course, it is not to say that she had given up reading altogether or minded this change at all; rather, she observed that her frequency of reading and her affinity for companionship were inversely proportional to one another. Where literature had once been her escape from the world's problems, both internal and external, and was a means for passing the time when else there was nothing to do, she found that the medium became but a hobby with this new lack of problems and consistency of friendship. She did enjoy this book, but it had been only one of a small library she brought with her and it had been the only book she had attempted this summer. Moreover, she was yet halfway through it.

"Hey, Blake?" Yang called from somewhere in the adjacent bathroom. "I'm out of toothpaste. Do you mind if I borrow some of yours for tonight?"

Without much thought on the matter, Blake replied, "Sure. Will we need to go out and get more tomorrow?"

"Yeah, probably. We also need to get groceries and stuff. You wanna go?"

Though the blonde could not see it, Blake shrugged. "Sure. I don't see why not. It could be fun."

A short laugh would be Yang's chosen response, but nothing else came after. With a squeak and a hiss, a faucet turned on and Yang went about her business while Blake returned to her story. However, the Faunus' attention would never truly return to the narrative because she found a more interesting character invade her every thought. Instead of the depressed hero whose ever-so-tragic backstory consumed him to no end, she found herself thinking of a person so caught up in positivity and others' happiness that her own past could not faze her. Instead of a tale of vengeance that might cure the hero of his ailments, Blake thought of the girl whose existence was selfless and flippant. Instead of the White Fang, she thought about Yang with an excited smile.

The organization truly was gone from her life. They had the possibility to recover and were not a total aberration from their initial cause, but to Blake, they were simply wrong. At this point in time, they were the enemy and nothing more. Perhaps in the future, they might find new leadership, but even if they did, Blake had no intentions of returning. The Faunus were who she fought for, not the organization, and being a huntress beside someone like Yang would only mean protection for everyone, regardless of species. The memories still lingered, but they were now easier to ignore. She was with Yang now and had promised never to leave.

In a matter of minutes, the faucet would shut off and Yang would come into view, grinning widely and radiating palpable heat even from as far away as the door frame. She flipped the lights off, closed the door behind her, and made her way towards the similarly comfortable Faunus. Blake raised an eyebrow when Yang simply stopped beside the bed and smiled down at the bowless girl. She did not say anything at first, instead leaning down and placing a promising kiss atop Blake's forehead. It was now apparent to the Faunus that obligations were about to take hold of her partner and that this kiss was simply a means of appeasing potential disagreements. Still, she would not argue with the action because of the wonderful sensation it caused, but she did give an inquisitive look when Yang pulled away.

"I'm gonna be right back, kitten. I need to go check on Ruby and see how she's doing first, and then we can head off to bed." She smirked. "Sound good?" While this meant that the two would be away from one another for a few minutes, Blake understood the unfortunate necessity. The Faunus nodded, causing Yang's smirk to widen. "All right. Be right back!"

At this, the pajama-clad blonde all but skipped towards the hallway before exiting with a wink and an entirely unnecessary wave. Blake rolled her eyes. All of this operatic emotion caused by their momentary separation ("separation," of course, being an excessively dramatic word for this instance) was completely gratuitous but vaguely humorous in a way which does not make one laugh so much as it does lighten the mood.

Soon after, the door across the way opened with a creak and the light behind it spilled into the hall, causing Blake's unbound traits to perk and focus on the conversation. She did not perceive this occasion as eavesdropping by any means, merely care for Yang and her sister. "Ruby?" the blonde would ask, speaking at a volume that would only be used if the young girl was awake. A slight shuffling sound could be heard followed by Yang asking with an evident smile, "Hey, sis, what's up?"

"Nothing much!" the young leader chirped. "Me and Weiss—" She was suddenly stopped. "Sorry, Weiss and I were just talking about what we're gonna do tomorrow. How'd your date go?"

"Great!" the blonde responded. "We went to that sushi place I told you about."

"Aw, you should've brought me, too! Weiss, we need to go there sometime. I mean, it's a sushi place on the beach—like, on the sand! How cool is that?"

"Absolutely not," rejected the heiress. "Why you would voluntarily pay for food that will inevitably be covered in sand is beyond me. And besides, that's a terrible place to build anything unless your point is to have it wash out to sea."

Yang scoffed. "Suit yourself. That place is loads of fun. Like, we got a little boat with all kinds of sushis on it—"

"Sushi," Weiss corrected. "It's a mass noun and is grammatically singular."

"Yeah, whatever. So, they set you up at this small table—usually, only couples go there—and they put a lantern between you when you sit down. It's really sappy stuff, but man is the food good."

"Really?" asked Ruby. "What'd you have?"

Again, Yang scoffed. "I told you already! We got a boat."

"A boat?" Weiss asked, deadpan.

"Yes, Weiss, I ate a boat. You know, the cannons were a little overdone and I think I still have a bit of mizenmast stuck in my teeth, but overall, that had to be the best boat I sank in years."

At this, both Ruby and Blake began to laugh, the former at a more enthused volume because of Weiss' probable expression while the latter simply giggled so to avoid interrupting their conversation. Blake closed her book and focused the all of her attention on the scene in the other room. Mostly, she would admit, this was simple anticipation for Yang's return overpowering her want to read, but she also did enjoy the interaction between Yang and the newer couple.

"I hope you get scurvy," Weiss said.

"Sounds like _someone_'s jealous that they didn't get to have a romantic dinner on the beach."

"Why are you even here?"

A smile could be clearly heard in Yang's voice, one that was no longer teasing or vindictive towards the heiress but instead one that was sincere and excited. "No reason. I'm just checking up on you two, seeing if you're okay before I head in."

"We're doing fine," assured Ruby. "We're probably gonna head in pretty soon, too. Hey, how's Blake doing, by the way? Did you…"

"Almost," Yang sighed. It was then that Blake's curiosity piqued, being that this conversation, like the one a week prior to Yang's birthday, likely had the potential for importance. As such, her hearing sharpened and her mirth momentarily fell away for critical observation. "I almost did, but I kinda…forgot it."

"You forgot it?" Ruby exclaimed. "How do you forget something like that?"

"I don't know! I just did! Look, I carry it with me every day, and I was absolutely positive I had it. I even did everything perfectly and said everything that needed to be said."

"But you forgot it." For some reason, the young girl sounded disappointed.

"Yeah. I still have it, though. I just forgot to bring it with me."

Now it was Ruby's turn to sigh. "Yang, you're only hurting yourself by doing this. It can wait, you know? You don't have to do it this summer. Just wait a while! It'll probably be better that way."

"I know, Ruby. I just think it's the right thing to do, though. If I don't do it soon and something happens to one of us—"

"Don't think like that," Ruby interrupted, her tone reassuring and strong—just like her sister's, if Blake was to muse. "You'll be fine. We'll all be fine. The only way you're going to get hurt is if you keep thinking about this and don't do anything. Do something for yourself for once, Yang. Do something that makes you happy."

"Um, excuse me?" Weiss cut in. "Is there something I'm missing here?"

Her response came in the form of a ragged exhale from the blonde. "It's nothing," Yang said. "Don't worry about it. If you really have to know, then Ruby can catch you up to speed, but it's kinda personal." She paused a beat. "And Ruby…thanks for saying that. I think I know what I'm gonna do now."

"Anytime!" Ruby chirped, causing a slight chuckle from Yang.

"All right, sis, I'm gonna head in. Are you two gonna be okay?" Her response came in the forms of an enthusiastic assurance from her sister and a metered promise from the heiress. "Good to hear. Don't stay up too late, all right? Love you, Ruby."

"Love you, too, Yang!"

Yang then regarded the heiress with a curt but not at all hostile, "Weiss."

"Yang."

At this, the door to Ruby's room was closed and the blonde let out another sigh. Unlike those previous, however, this was more so telling of Yang's exhaustion than composing. A chuckle emanated from the warm figure before she turned and moved back into Blake's sight.

The Faunus welcomed her weary, obviously distressed girlfriend back with a loving smile. It was a great thing Yang was doing, checking on her sister. It was an action no one had done for Blake at any point during her affiliation with the White Fang. However, now it was Yang's turn to be taken care of, and as she lumbered towards the bed, Blake moved her book to sit beside her weapon on the nightstand and opened a space in the covers for her girlfriend. Just as quickly as this space was made, Yang flopped face-down into it with a groan.

"Tired?" Blake asked, already knowing the answer but wanting to tease Yang nevertheless. She received no verbal response, instead finding the blonde head slide over to her and come to rest in her lap. A pained groan was heard. "It seems so," she joked, running a hand up the wild mane and back down again along Yang's spine. This elicited a contented hum and a nuzzle into the Faunus' legs. Yang was cute like this, Blake would muse, tuckered out and craving of any sort of affection. She realized suddenly that this was a monologue more characteristic of Yang's diction than her own, but she did not really care. Instead, she simply smirked at the form curling tiredly at her legs.

Eventually, Yang would realize that this position was inopportune for sleep, causing her to move off of the bed and then back under the covers to rest her head against Blake's shoulder. When the Faunus turned to look down at the blonde form, she found amethyst eyes dazzling up at her. "Are you going to be all right tonight?" Yang would ask. "The storm's probably going to roll in pretty soon."

Blake placed an arm around her and pulled her close, leaving the blonde's head at her chest and the strong arms which had been the Faunus' summer-long comfort wrapped around her waist. "As long as you're here, I feel safe."

"Ditto that, kitten." Yang smiled into her partner's sleepwear, laughing a quiet laugh as she found a spot beneath Blake's chin. "Thanks for…Well, thanks for doing all you do. I know I can be a pain to deal with sometimes and I know you'd rather be alone—"

"No," Blake cut in, "I don't want to be anywhere else other than here."

Again, the blonde laughed. "Still, I know how you don't like the crowds and situations I more or less force you into, so I'm sorry. And I'm sorry for dragging you through that protest. That was…bad. That's something I don't think I'll ever let myself live down, but I'm glad it's over and I'm glad we're still together."

"Me too." They were once more returning to their apologetics, scrambling for safety and security in their relationship as they tried desperately to ward off the past. But this was a futile effort, Blake realized. Their past was behind them and their future together would only be strengthened by their combined happiness, not their sorrow. As such, the Faunus held her girlfriend close, wrapping both arms around her shoulders and nuzzling into her golden hair, kissing the errant cowlick and taking in the lavender scent of home. "I'm sorry, Yang," she would mumble through her caress. "You did nothing wrong."

"Neither did you, kitten. It was all just a mess." To Blake's chagrin, the blonde escaped her clutches and moved to sit beside her. "I'm sorry," she said again, lilac pleading with earnest amber. "I love you, Blake. I promise I won't do anything like that again."

Perhaps it was due to the present happiness Blake felt about her situation—her long-awaited abandonment of lingering White Fang affiliations and the acceptance Yang had given her after two cold weeks—or perhaps it was due to the sheer frequency of the apologies given on this day, but Blake chose not to use her words as a response. These words which had both eluded and saved her over the past ten years or even another "I love you" could simply not suffice for the adoration Blake held for her partner. Instead, she moved to capture Yang's lips in her own, surprising the blonde and grinning into the embrace.

Though Yang was initially caught off guard by the action, she quickly melted into it, sighing gently as she closed her eyes and leaned into the embrace. Blake's hand found her partner's back and Yang's caressed the aquiline jaw, drawing the Faunus closer until their beings melded as one. Yang felt the need to burst into tears, to sob uncontrollably at the happiness of completion and the pain of destruction. It was a slow act they committed, a powerful act, one which was tender and caring but insistent and kind—it was a promise of acceptance to a question unasked and a light in the darkness of a future so frightful. Perhaps a tear was shed (if this was the case, then Yang would not mind), but the blonde would smile back, promising love a thousand times over and feeling Blake's own communicated in kind. It was possible, Yang believed, that the one her mother had spoken of, the one person in her life who would love her back unequivocally, was Blake—No! No, it was certainly Blake, and she knew this for a fact.

The Faunus would giggle as she pulled away, positively intoxicated by glee. In kind, Yang would come to rest her head on her pillow, gazing up at her partner dreamily. "What is it?" she'd ask. "What's so funny, kitten?"

In the Faunus' mind, the explanation seemed entirely unfunny in an objective sense but amusing to her addled self. Still, Yang had asked and the answer did concern her, leading to Blake's statement of, "You taste like mint."

Now it was Yang's turn to laugh, loudly but shortly. "Hey, don't blame me for your toothpaste."

"Blame? You make it sound like I'm upset."

"Wait. You aren't?"

"I'm amused, Yang. Tired and amused—delirious would be the better word."

Yang sighed in faux relief. "Oh, thank God. For a second there, I thought I'd have to apologize again. _That_ doesn't get stale after the thousandth time."

Blake simply smirked back. "Are you ready to go to sleep?"

"Yup!" Yang chirped, repositioning the covers over herself and turning so she faced her partner entirely. "Hit the lights, if you wouldn't mind."

The Faunus leaned towards the nightstand that she had, two months ago, claimed as her own and switched off the lamp that sat upon it. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness and pulled whatever ambient light existed from within the house and beyond the rain-washed windows, she felt a languid arm snake around her side and a hand come to rest on her abdomen. She initially thought it a simple gesture of affection and familiarity, but such placid sentiments quickly fell to a suppressed yelp as the hand and arm forcefully pulled her back into Yang. Before Blake knew what was going on, a pair of grinning lips were grazing her human ear and her back was pressed snugly against the blonde's chest.

She tried to say something in response but was quieted by her partner's shushing. She was told to listen, and because it was Yang who told her to do so and because she loved this feeling of closeness, she complied.

Rain pattered against the window, tapping ceaselessly to an aimless beat. Patterns would be heard within the swelling assaults to the wind's harangue and as well in the momentary cease-fires as the wind took its breath. It was then that a low growl rumbled from the earth, from the sky, and from the very shadows still within Blake's heart, but Yang knew this would happen and held her close, radiating a prideful heat and using the all of her strength to ensure that the hold Blake was in would never cede. In her panic, Blake turned her head, desperate for assistance and found a sight which calmed her worries of both the present and the past.

Whereas Yang had been cold and icy upon her scorning and abandonment in the instance of inconsolability and shivering self-loathing, she now glowed in the night, her hair and the aura around her burning a peaceful amber. This aura, this vehement fire, was love, and as the Faunus gazed upon the golden form, the thunder could not scare her.

"Yang," she whispered, awestruck by the strength this manifestation must have required.

The fire did not torch nor did it singe. It burned without pain and flared with her kiss. "I love you, Blake. I'm not going to let anyone hurt you, not anymore. And that includes me, too. For what it's worth, I'll be with you for as long as you need me, and I'll help in any way I can."

All Blake could do was smile. She had no response to give or any apt expression to show. She simply smiled and cuddled back against the flaming sight and allowed herself to adore the warmth. This was home. This was as far away from the White Fang as she could ever get and she was happy. The thunder growled again and frightened only her most immediate responses, leaving her mind rational and her body warm. This was comfortable—this was paradoxically the childhood she had been deprived of and the adulthood she had been promised.

She knew now why Yang feared the passage of time and why she clutched so desperately to her frightened partner. She was afraid that Blake would leave her. Even after all the apologies given and after the assurance of permanence, Yang was still uncertain. It was doubtful this thought would ever leave her because it was irrational and thus made every other rationale seem illogical. Yang was afraid that if time were to pass, her importance would fade and all those she held dear would leave her broken and cold. And though it was objectively doubtful that she would recover from this idea, Blake believed otherwise and would remain by her side as the years passed them by.

Within the arms of fire and gold, Blake felt her eyes droop and the compounding fatigue of the prior weeks' worry pull her into slumber. Her last memories of that night were of Yang, of her warmth, of her loving words, and of the disparate light which filled the room. Her eyes would close with a final whisper of love returned immediately after by her recipient, and the young Faunus would drift into the darkness of her contented dreamscape. The blonde behind her would grin widely at the girl who had helped her so. With a final kiss to the smiling cheek of her girlfriend, Yang followed suit, closing her eyes and nuzzling close, not letting any cold hurt her partner.

Unfortunately, with the transition from consciousness to unconsciousness of the emanating blonde came abdication. As her body rested and her mind went dormant, the aura which had required consistent care faded away entirely. The flames were gone, the room went dark, and the comforting warmth which had kept Blake calm was no longer as strong as it had been. As the storm rolled in, baring its lightning teeth and howling its haunting thunder, neither Blake nor her fragile psyche had any defense left. The storm approached, the second of its horrific kind for this summer, bearing far greater wrath to be wreaked upon an unguarded target. There would be no simple scare as there had been before. Rather, pain would prevail with no possible consolation.

* * *

And there's your cliffhanger for the time being. "The Storm: Part 2" looms in the distance as the thunder batters a sleeping Faunus' resolve. But, again, this will not occur until after _Edelweiss_ chapter four is released (which I do not assume will take too long). I should probably also mention that I'm not titling the next chapter as such. Sorry for any disappointment that may have caused.

Now, before I remark on anything else about this chapter, I should mention that the subject of Ruby and Yang's conversation as well as Yang's action on the beach will be entirely up to your speculation. Though the answer is definite and, from my perspective, obvious, I must be evasive about it and refrain from confirming any assumptions as to what it all meant similarly to how I cannot speak of what was inside Ruby's present to Yang. I apologize for this silence, but I cannot say that I am sorry.

As for the change in mindsets that occurred within this chapter, contrasting the emotions at the end of this chapter with those at the end of the last, I can safely say that Blake and Yang have forgiven each other completely. However, this is not to say that this chapter was a happy one by any means. Rather, if one looks at the situation from Yang's perspective—from the perspective of a girl who will make others happy at the cost of her own wellbeing—it is a dark, desperate struggle for reunification. She did, of course, find her bearings by this chapter's end, but the journey to that point was one filled with façade smiles, tired sighs, and appeasing laughs. This is not to say that these were intended to fool Blake, but instead they were intended to fool the blonde, herself.

But this all spawns from her drive to avoid becoming like her father. With this chapter, Yang's relationship with her family is further elaborated upon and an a clearer description is supplied about her father who was referenced, however briefly, in chapter twelve. Normally, I do not enjoy stories with completely broken families, being that they were the only things people seemed to write about when I took Creative Writing courses. Needless to say, it was tiring after a while. There does, however, need to be some turbulence around these four and their parents, but having every single interaction be disjointed (like Weiss' family, as explained in _Edelweiss_) would just be trite. This leaves Yang's father to be a deplorable mess who more or less abandoned his daughters for grief alone, but he is by no means the story's main antagonist nor Yang's primary source of conflict.

Lastly, I should thank you all once again for reading. It really does mean a lot that you would take the time out of your day to read these chapters. I can imagine that the repetitions of this statement might not make sense to some of you, but just know that whenever a chapter of this story gets a hit past the first two, I get this surge of happiness that makes me feel important, if only for a second. So, thank you for making this writer's life worthwhile.

Four chapters remain.

Before I leave you all for this next pause, I should remark on the events which transpired during this past week at the time of this chapter's posting.

Even after walking the stages of grief, I find myself stranded in the mist of denial. To experience one with such a work ethic as Monty's and then learn of his passing is contradictory to all which is right in the world—it is as though progress should keep coming and the wheels should keep turning, but there is no engine to power what progress could be made. It feels like a paradox, as though a cruel prank is being played on me over something devastatingly real. It feels as if he isn't gone and that he might return at any moment, but this is textbook denial and ignoring it would be childish and antithetical to his ideals.

I never did have the pleasure of meeting Monty, but from what I know about him and what effects I saw that spawned from his creations, I am positive that he was nothing short of a creative leader to this community. From prompting confused YouTube comments as to how Halo characters could fight in the way they did to spurring an entire community into imagining what impossible weapon combinations might work well in the world of Remnant, Monty inspired concurrent childlike whimsicality and a creative drive which pushed the community towards following their dreams—two invaluable traits in this day and age. Truly, his role as an inspiration to many should not be overlooked. To me, he was a benchmark for productivity that I strive constantly to achieve. But even more than this, even more than a community leader, Monty was an artist.

An artist is succeeded by their work. Writers and painters and filmmakers and visionaries of all points in history live on through the works they create and the stories they tell. Monty's art was animation, and through his art, he told a story. It was a story of perseverance, of goodness, of strength in a just cause, and his message was successful. Regardless of your thoughts on his quality, his ideas in RWBY, Red vs. Blue, Dead Fantasy, and Haloid have affected the lives of many people, and to disregard this fact would be to diminish an artist's work and therefore an artist's life. His memory will live on through the art which has defined him and his stories will succeed him far past this day. It would not be a stretch to compare Monty to Shakespeare or Picasso or Haydn because his work showed prospect and he placed his art before all else. Through his productivity, his drive for excellence, and his far-reaching effects which resonated throughout the community, Monty bore the mark of greatness.

As I type this, I find myself lacking of words at this point. Truthfully, it feels as if he's still out there, tiring away at his keyboard while I simply peck at my own. It feels as if a brother has been lost, and in some ways, one has. He was a friend, mentor, and role model to this community and he will never be forgotten.

Farewell, Mr. Oum. You changed my life.

And to you all who read this, please stay safe. These are still rough times and emotions are getting the better of us. Even if you do feel fine and composed, make sure you are staying hydrated, well-nourished, and are getting enough sleep. Please take care.


	17. Chapter 17: Nightshade

Welcome back.

I apologize for how long this chapter took to come out. Not only was this particular entry a bit difficult due to the impending subject matter, but the preceding chapter of _Edelweiss_ was similarly demanding. Fortunately, there should be some amount of relief to the intervals at which these chapters are released; however, this will be discussed later in the end author's note.

What is important now is a bit of priming warning. If you remember how the last chapter ended, then you should expect that this instalment will not be quite as happy as most others. In fact, I'd like to think that this chapter is a bit darker than those previous; but this is not to say that it is entirely dark. No, 20,000 words of pure maudlin darkness would just be angst, and that is not my intent. That being said, I wasn't kidding in the last author's note when I referred to this chapter as "The Storm: Part 2." It may not have the same title or structure, but it is not dissimilar to the original. So, I should warn that this chapter will be dark, and while some points are heavier than others and some are even comparatively light, this chapter is altogether grave.

But I should allow you to form your own opinions on it. With that said, I'll leave you with chapter seventeen of _Valence_.

* * *

Chapter 17: Nightshade

November rains fell against the Faunus charge, breaking the will of these self-appointed constables and drenching their immaculate, bloodstained dress. A crowd gathered beyond the fence, snarling like the dogs they so often portrayed themselves as and battering against their guarded kennel walls. However, these humans would never be permitted entry to their gates unless they sat, begged, and rolled over—it would only be just. For the first time since the Grimm had been pushed back and the walls erected, humanity found itself poised for defeat. But such an immediate loss would never equal their crimes. No, there was to be a trial by a jury of these scornful constables and a sentence unavoidable except to those Faunus among the opposition. This was justice after so many years of death and imprisonment and yet it was only a stepping stone to true equality. The hammer of thunder shook the Faunus youth.

She stood on the edge of collapse, drifting through both time and iterations of herself while staring blankly at the vicious mob beyond the barricades. She wanted to hate them as all those around her did, but doing so would be uncharacteristic. Truthfully, she was at a loss for what to think. The younger Faunus knew that she needed to defend this factory and take responsibility for those under her command, but she had sworn off the White Fang; she remembered pledging herself to someone else and intending to rectify her past mistakes. But what possible mistakes were there? And who was this someone else if not a member of this infallible group? They all felt important, but so did her fury, and it is to say that in this war of duality, Blake simply wanted to go home.

A shallow mist had settled over the warring factions and shrouded them now in a ghostly haze, obscuring their defining features and alerting Blake to the fact that nothing felt right about this situation. It was late autumn but stiflingly humid, yet she could clearly see the humans' spite through the veil of freezing rain—it was summer and winter; there was new life and death.

Her nonexistent radio squawked, detailing the whereabouts of her impending goal: an orator of mending calibre and a judge who would preside over this uncontested ruling. Breathlessly, a distant name escaped her lips, articulating its faraway love through an instinctual act, but all her subordinates heard were mere practiced orders. Four moved to threaten and part the turbulent sea while six spread out and scanned for impatient jumpers, rifles brandished eagerly at the chance to answer their own prejudices. Still others secured the podium while yet more appeared out of nowhere, forming a driveway for the inevitable car and standing thus at attention. However, this did not seem to be the end, for as Blake scanned the factory parking lot, she found that their numbers did not cease and that it was as if an entire battalion had been placed under her muted control, swarming to protect and eliminating all remaining gaps. Blake was suddenly trapped—within her own mind, on a mission she did not know of prior, and amongst a hateful crowd—and she was scared.

More than this, she was torn between not daring to breathe and physically being unable to. They were a crowd indomitable, unable to be parted by a moment's courage or her own command. No, they were vicious and infectious, they were able to rouse her fury and make her clutch at her gun. Yet they were many and numerous, and if she were to fail her objective by giving way to the humans, they would undoubtedly crush her in the name of misguided sympathy—but this had always been the White Fang's flaw, had it not? They were dissonant in their fealty logic, heeding the calls of braying warmongers while striving for peace for a supposedly indefensible people. But Blake was no different, for who would join to protest and stay for the slaughter? This was wrong, so very, very wrong, and as the humans roared and the unseen gates groaned open, her impossible breath hitched.

She was smaller than the rest, feet shorter than her nearest allies, but somehow she could see above her commanded throng as the black limousine parted the crowd and entered the safety of the thousand guards. The humans erupted into a sudden frenzy, shouting obscenities and slurs. But even these could not affect Blake nearly as much as what her comrades chanted. "Bite the hand!" they roared. "Bite the hand!" It was an infuriating chant, one which contradicted the White Fang's constructive efforts and animalized their cause. Still, the young Faunus screamed unwittingly and against her own good judgment, falling in line with her childhood beliefs and coming to hate the quieter crowd beyond the gates.

But this was wrong. Humans were not her enemy. In fact, she had been accepted by them as Blake Belladonna for the first time since joining the White Fang. Among them, she was not simply another nameless lieutenant, a child star with a knack for the shadows; she was a friend, a partner, and a member of families both biological and otherwise. She was strong in her convictions and open with her emotions, but among this crowd she had become nerveless and quiet, only shouting when the action was vogue. And as the car door opened at the foot of the podium's stage, she knew unconditionally that her anger was misplaced.

Suddenly, a sight of flame and gold stumbled out of the vehicle and crashed against the pavement. Just as quickly, Blake's chants stopped at this first viewing of Yang. Anger turned to fear as the blonde was hoisted up by a black glove and a black jacket amongst this sea of white.

Yang had no strength left to complain, no fire in her eyes as would be readily apparent. Instead, she compliantly walked to the whim of her captor. Unfortunately, this allowed Blake a chance to glimpse the pain in her partner's features, the enervated blankness of her usual lilac smile and her telltale frown of internal deliberation—she was beaten down, but not in any physical way. Her mind now clung to doubts and her stubborn will had faded completely; this was justified to her, Blake surmised. Yang saw whatever was happening as justified and would peacefully face her doom for the wrongdoings she did not commit. And as she ascended the steps of her penance, bringing with her the leadership executor, Blake's heart sank, silencing every word she could ever say and spurring her mind towards hopeful rationalizations.

A brief hush swept across the crowds, an irreverent pause for the spectacle to come. All eyes turned to the dour blonde who now stood beside the podium while all hostilities coalesced on her lone figure. However, as soon as the man in black took his place behind the lectern, the chants restarted. "Bite the hand!" screamed the masked forces with fists held high. "Bite the hand!" bellowed the opposition beyond the gate. "Bite the hand!" cried Blake Belladonna, shuddering against her unwanted fury.

With a quiet rumble of the nearing thunder, rain began to fall harder than ever, battering this child's resolve. This was wrong—Why was Yang here? She should be at Beacon or Signal or somewhere else safe on the island of Patch, but she was here! Even worse, her unbound wrists hung dutifully before her as she awaited her undeserved trial. Beside her was no orator or justice; Blake could not see his face from where she stood, but she knew the man well and so too his venomed scorn. This was all the more reason to be shocked. Yang was here and so was he, and by logic's right, this was to be the end. As Blake screamed the sickly words and glared with all the hate she had grown up with, her bridled tears fell freely. But they were no use—they were for Yang alone, and the blonde would never see them again. The rain fell in torrents, clattering against the steel of the cars and factory and washing away Blake's necessary emotion into invisible obscurity. No matter how much she cried, no one would ever see.

The man raised his hand and, all at once, the chants abruptly stopped. This left the constant hiss of scalding rain and its deafening patter to preside over them all. His hand lowered and came to rest on the hilt of his blade as Blake's eyes frightfully closed.

"Humans are war," he conjectured. "Without them, we would be at peace. We'd be without persecution or shame. There'd be no armies, no hunters, no war, and no fear. Humans are the reason why we fight. Humans are the ones who cannot suffer change. At the briefest hint of opposition, they hide away in their fear and let their generals and soldiers and hunters meter out justice at the cost of all civilization. At the briefest hint of difference, they kill the deemed intruders like a body rejecting its cold. The kingdoms have been at war for thousands of years, fighting an enemy that cannot be beaten, and yet this war will last forever because of hunters like this girl here."

Yang stepped forward, eyes trained apologetically on the masks before her. "Huntresses have extended our war far past a reasonable limit. They glorify weapons, romanticize combat, and find excitement in allowing a choice few Grimm to slip away, letting them repopulate for a larger fight in their future. They play games with our lives for the thrill of a hunt. They're addicts, unable to admit their faults and still cavalier with the lives they supposedly protect. They are our first and last lines of defense, and to secure this position, they choose to never win. Humans are war. If we let them live, we are only dooming ourselves."

With a swift kick to the back of her knee, Yang fell and so too did Blake's hopes. She could not watch as the man unsheathed his sword, placing the red blade at the back of Yang's presented neck. The young Faunus could not look, and though her eyes were screwed shut to avoid the unthinkable, her vision went unobscured. Somehow, she could see the lilac orbs which had always brought her comfort and the sunny grin that welcomed her home. But as Yang now kneeled before the unmoved crowd, the only emotion she showed was a mildly amused smirk.

Blake reached for her hip, wanting to end this needless violence, but she found no pistol. She reached for her back and the esteemed Gambol Shroud, but her arms would not move. She wanted to call out to Yang and tell her to fight—she wanted to take on the legion and overthrow the usurpers—but she could not breathe.

The man raised his sword and the crowd drew a collective, eager breath. Rain pattered against the occupied concrete, marring the whiteness of the thousand with a well-deserved grey. They were wrong, they wanted this, and most frightening of all was the smile that Yang gave. Tears streamed readily down Blake's cheeks as she tried to make a noise—a whimper, a sob, anything at all to at least let Yang know that she was not alone. However, as the blade reached its apex, she found her breath hitched. This girl that she loved and hated would be gone forever, taken by the young Faunus' own cowardice. Had she the strength, Blake would have taken the blade and broken it gladly, and had she the will to vocalize her own fear, she would have given Yang her last solace. But she was weak, a brainwashed coward, and as the blade fell, all she could do was scream, "Bite the hand!"

The hammer of thunder fell with a roaring snap.

* * *

It was normal for Yang to sleep through a thunderstorm. Her mind was a restless one when it came to others' pain, but she found that the steady thrum of wind and rain could distract her aching heart. This, coupled with the quiet grumblings of the overhead storm, made sleep a guaranteed relief. However, it was only because of the favored Faunus curled up against her front that the experience was made all the more enjoyable. Yang had rested happily and most assuredly safely against her partner, arms wrapped protectively around Blake's shivering form and head nestled cozily between the Faunus' upper ears. The storm had become loud at multiple points during the night, but for the blonde, these crashes of thunder and gusts of rain only eased her into a deeper dreamless slumber. Blake, on the other hand, was not so fortunate.

Yang was awoken sometime in the early morning by Blake shifting in her arms. She had lazily opened an eye to see that her partner was indeed still with her, but rather than closing immediately thereafter, she watched as Blake quietly shivered beneath their shared blanket. A nightmare, she deduced. After all, Blake's fear during the night prior had been of such an event. However, as Yang lay in her half-awake stupor, she noticed that her flared aura had weakened, leaving only her natural heat rather than the flame she had intended.

But this was a simple fix. She cuddled close to her partner and increased the outward flow of heat and security, pulling Blake back against her for good measure. To punctuate this soothing effort, she placed a tired kiss on her girlfriend's ear and shushed her shivers away.

This seemed to work. The small, sudden tremors vanished from Blake's form and she suddenly began to breathe again. Admittedly, Yang had not noticed the lack of this latter factor, her mind having been instead focused on the nightmare's mere existence, but now that she was aware of the detriment and now that said detriment was gone, she could smile freely and drowsily. Sure, Blake could be having a rough time, she reasoned, but this would not matter if the young Faunus did not remember her dream in the morning. This was Yang's plan, this safeguarding ignorance, and she decided on enacting it by sleepily warming her partner's cold and hugging away whatever fears remained. However, reprieve would not be found as Blake's breathing hastened and sharpened, culminating in a series of inarticulate gasps and groans.

In an instant, Yang's eyes flew open, reacting to the quiet noises from the girl beside her. "Blake?" she whispered, freeing her partner from the possibly suffocating embrace and easing up on the outpouring heat. Unfortunately, this received no response. "Blake?" she asked again, this time louder and with full intent to rouse the girl.

Unfortunately, the only reaction to this outside stimulus was a return to shivering and a return in earnest. Blake turned in her sleep, grunting at the slight resistance she received from Yang's lingering hug. However, the blonde could not bring herself to let go, being shocked into a state of immobility by her partner's sudden disturbance. Ruby had never done anything like this whenever she had nightmares, and even then hers were so few and far between that Yang had limited knowledge of what to do. Of course, she would support her partner and comfort her in whatever way she knew how, but all of the blonde's ideas had been exhausted by this point—that is, all options short of waking Blake up, but she had no idea what would happen if she did.

She could see the faint silhouettes of her girlfriend's lips try for words spoken in tongues, but all that came out was incoherent babble which somehow told of a darker tale than imagined. Yang sat up, loosening her hold in the hope of appeasing these shuddering movements and gaining a vantage on her partner's pain. Unfortunately, not even this stopped the vacant convulsions. Blake continued to twist and contort to whatever posture she deemed necessary, and as Yang pulled even further away, truly aghast at this show of unconscious terror, the Faunus' groans found their articulation.

"I can't breathe," she moaned. "I can't breathe."

"Blake?" Yang all but shouted. "Kitten? Is everything all right in there? Come on, talk to me, Blake! Wake up!" She grasped at her partner's shoulders, restraining the Faunus and trying as gently as humanly possible to shake her into consciousness. Blake's face scrunched in pain, brows furrowing and frown deepening as she chanted again. However, the blonde did not relent. She simply could not give up on this chosen action because her partner was in trouble and the only way left to free her was to shake her out of it. "Come on, kitten, wake up now. It's time to wake up. Please, Blake, come on. Wake up!"

In an instant, all of Yang's shaking and all of Blake's groans came to a startled halt as a flash of light filled the room and a booming crash overtook the sisters' home. Lightbulbs rattled and walls shook, and as Yang stared nervously at the silent form beneath her, Blake's eyes snapped open.

Before she knew what was happening, Yang found her hands torn from the Faunus' shoulders and a knee lodged suddenly in her gut. The blonde gasped as breath left her, yet she was unable to remove herself from her girlfriend. Just as quickly, Blake's eyes widened in surprise, aware of the arresting form atop herself yet blind to whom it was. One hand thrust upwards into Yang's throat, desperately trying to return the suffocating sensations, while the other bolted out to the nightstand beside them. To her partner's dismay, Blake quickly found her weapon, and as she clumsily swept her book and alarm from the table, Yang could only choke out strangled pleas. However, a fire burned in the Faunus' eyes, a fury forged by an established vendetta which she now saw fulfillment of. It was this fire which brought the muzzle of Gambol Shroud to Yang's shoulder and it was this fury which gave Blake cause to pull the trigger.

The result was an empty click.

Unfortunately, this only caused the Faunus' eyes to widen even further in alarm. She struggled beneath Yang's form, grunting growls as she again sent a knee into her partner's abdomen, causing the blonde to wince and shift away, taken aback by both the suddenness of the pain and its inflictor. There were no analyzing thoughts in this moment, no rationalizing wishes, only the impetus to react and the disbelief that hindered. Blake was fighting with everything she had to break away from something she simply could not, and though Yang did not fully understand, it was her duty to help.

But Blake was afraid, scared of her past and fighting her own paralysis. With the space Yang had granted her by recoiling, the Faunus was able to pull her arm back, bringing the blonde's eyes to her impendent grip and bearing the blade of her sword.

It was at this point that Yang realized what was to come. As such, she tried desperately to pull herself from her lethargy and bolster her aura. "Blake," she rasped pleadingly. "Blake, it's all right. I'm not trying to hurt you!" She could feel the coarse tingle of a forced power flow throughout her body, the gradual climb in potential energy that simply could not grow fast enough, but as she beheld her partner's furious eyes, Yang knew that everything she said had gone unheard.

And as the former White Fang member brought her sword down with lethal intent, Yang could only scream, "Blake!"

Consciousness took the young Faunus with a start. Blake inhaled sharply as her senses returned, finding that her nightmare had simply been that. There was no crowd, no protest, no trial, and no hatred. She was home and had only been startled by the thunder. For this, she could sigh. However, as she as she tried to relax and accept her present reality, she noticed the oddity of her position. Her knee was pointed upward, her hands, too, and all were contacting something. Her left hand and knee touched something warm and yielding as her right hand was holding… Her eyes widened in realization, releasing this blinding tiredness and revealing to her a sight far worse than any held memory.

Yang strained beneath the choking grip, face red from an apparent lack of oxygen and arms placed shieldingly before herself, altogether tinting a misty orange. However, asphyxiation was not Blake's primary concern. Instead, her shock rested with the blade embedded in her partner's forearm and the painful wince this caused.

Thoughts of how or why did not run through the Faunus' mind. Truly, all she knew in this present moment was that her blade was cutting Yang and that Yang had been cut.

Their door opened with a sudden commotion. "Yang?" called Ruby. She burst into the room, forgoing common courtesy and showering the entryway with semblance petals. Immediately, her eyes gravitated towards the only light in the room and, consequently, she found the iridescent orbs of tearful shock. "Blake? Blake, what happened? Is everything all right?" As if on cue, the young girl found her answer by way of another flash of light. As the thunder cracked and the Faunus winced, Ruby gaped at the image before her. "Yang!" she yelped, rushing to the side of the bed and staring in disbelieving fear at the intersection between flesh and steel.

The girl in reference groaned, pulling herself from her shock-stricken stupor and thereby reacting to her partner's attack. Yang had always been the one to show no fear amongst their group. She seldom admitted pain of any sort and even less often did she display physical anguish to any blow. Now, however, saw Yang in obvious discomfort. She was in pain and audibly so, and as she looked down at her partner, she could only grimace. But she would push on and move Blake's trembling hands for her, taking the back of Gambol Shroud's blade and pulling it out cautiously. It had not pierced too far into her, but it did outpace the shielding aura and had managed to embed itself at an excruciating depth.

At the very moment Yang was released, she rolled off of the Faunus and clutched at her arm desperately. Her breaths came in arrested hisses and she continued to roll onto her front, applying pressure in any way she could to the unexpected wound. Ruby immediately moved to comfort her, placing a hand on her sister's back and asking inaudible questions in the worried way she did.

Blake, meanwhile, was at a loss. The sword fell from her feeble hands and thudded absently on the carpet below. She had hit Yang. She had cut Yang. She had attacked Yang out of blind self-defense when the lines between nightmare and reality had been blurred. She wanted to cry, to apologize, but what apology could there be for an attempt on another's life? For the briefest of moments, Blake had wanted to run and relieve the team of her burden, but she had promised not to. She wanted to fix everything and go back in time and mend every imaginable wound, but it was all impossible. There was no running, no apologies, only acceptance. She could not notice Weiss standing quietly in the doorway or the whispered questions Ruby asked. All Blake knew was that she was a traitor, a coward. She had attacked Yang.

* * *

Blake sat alone in the sisters' kitchen, hands tearing punishingly at her hair. Thunder continued to crackle at regular intervals and the rains yet rolled in constant waves. However, all the stricken Faunus could see was the frightened look Yang had held. The image was burned into her mind and it was doubtful she would ever get over it—no, forgetting this would be wrong. There had been signs of selfless composure in her infrequent breathing, knitted brows, and complete lack of movement, but once Ruby broke the seal of her sister's calm, every moment of well-concealed suffering was let loose.

Yang had not cried—she was brave like that. Of course, she had reacted as anyone should, but she seemed far more composed in doing so than any person had a right to be. She had grunted, growled, and at one point whimpered, but it was her partner who cried first. Blake held her head now against the island counter, cradling the back of her neck as she pulled at her hair. She had been a coward—a traitor! She ran away to be alone when Weiss gave her the option and had ever since listened to the panicked commotion from down the hall. Surely Yang would live—there were no doubts about her strength—but Blake still worried about the possibility of hatred. There had been a boy in the blonde's life who had abused her, but Blake was unsure if anyone else could achieve this newest level of evil. She had attacked Yang in the middle of the night when her guard was down and had proceeded to run away in shame.

She wanted to be alone. The pain of this silence was now entirely justified. She was a criminal, a coward, and now a poor excuse for a partner, and she was not strong enough to suppress her gasping sobs. She deserved to be alone.

In this loathing moment, all her senses had been dulled and every thought was focused on these blaming rationalizations, fueling her need to cry and building towards an impetus for flight. Fortunately, Blake would suddenly be pulled from these thoughts as a layer of warmth covered her back and a quiet presence appeared behind her. A blanket had been draped over her shoulders and, instinctively, she pulled it close. The figure's hand then rubbed her teammate's back for a hesitant moment before pulling away and leaving the Faunus to her self-effacing ritual. However, it was soon apparent that Blake would not be alone and that this ritual would be postponed. The stool next to her was pulled back and the figure once again reached out.

Blake soon found herself wrapped in an embrace, hugged from the side and pulled towards the form next to her. She let out a quiet whimper and acquiesced, leaning into the warm girl and desperately hoping that it was Yang. Unfortunately, the figure was not, but the mere presence of her teammate was still a thankful reassurance. For now, Blake would shiver against her teammate's chest, sobbing weakly at her unintended act of malice and gripping desperately to the closeness that was provided. Her opposite shoulder was stroked by a cold, uncertain hand while the figure's other held the Faunus still, keeping the blanket close and warding off any feeling of disassociation or aloneness. Whoever this was, Blake was thankful, for now she had a shoulder to lean on and a friend in the darkness.

"Shh," Ruby soothed. "It's gonna be all right. Everything's gonna be okay."

Blake was surprised to a degree, but she simply could not react. Instead, she leaned further into the embrace, scooting closer to her leader and letting Ruby hug her as they together lamented. Blake had hurt this girl's sister; she had destroyed the intended façade of invincibility and had shown that Yang was just as human as everyone else. Ruby was old enough to come to terms with this, but Blake doubted that it would be easy. Yang was a role model they shared and looked to for personal growth, but now that she had been attacked, the young girl had every right to hate the Faunus. Nevertheless, she continued to hug Blake, shushing her quietly and being respectful to these unseemly emotions now on display.

Eventually, Blake's quiet chokes would end, leaving only tears to occasionally catch in the blanket around her. With this quiet, Ruby was given cause to speak, and when she did, she invoked her sister's confidence with a weary smile. "Yang's doing all right," she assured. "You got her pretty good, but I think she'll manage. Weiss is helping her find the first-aid stuff and they'll get her all patched up, but I think she's gonna be fine."

She then took a deep, disconcerting breath. Her hand stopped rubbing her teammate's arm and Blake could only brace for what was to be asked next. "Blake?" she began. "You didn't mean to hit Yang, did you? I mean, I know you probably didn't, but…did you?"

Opening her mouth, Blake tried for a word, but they all felt like lies. She instead shook her head.

"Okay," the young girl said. "That's pretty much all I needed to know. You've been a really good friend to her and I've never seen you two apart, so this is kinda…I don't know. Weird?" She sighed. "I'm sorry, Blake. I never should've made you promise me anything like I did. I shouldn't've doubted that you'd be good to her. And I know you didn't mean to hit her, either—that's just not _you_. I think she knows that, too, but I also think that's the problem."

This caused Blake's Faunus traits to droop even further, pressing apologetically against her head. Ruby seemed to notice, causing her to suddenly tense. "Sorry! That didn't really come out right." Blake sighed, partly in relief but mostly in solemn acceptance of the pain yet to be exposed. "What I meant to say is Yang's kinda tearing herself up about all this. Like, it's not good. I've only seen her like this when…" She let this sentence trial off, assumingly realizing that it was going nowhere. "She's gonna come out here soon, just so you know. I kinda called a team meeting and stuff, and I just wanted to make sure that's all right with you."

Yang would be arriving soon. This gave little time to form an appropriate apology or think of some way amend the situation. Ruby did say that Yang was not upset at her, but this was indeed coming from a girl who only saw the best in a situation. But at this time, under the shadow of failure and cowardice, there was no room for optimism. Yang deserved an apology—truthfully, she deserved more. She deserved a better friend, a better teammate, and a better partner, but Blake had promised never to leave and intended on keeping this promise. She wanted to see Yang smile again and cast a warm light as she so often did, but this would take time and required the wound to heal first. Patience was possible, but she worried about the blonde. This promise of unity was a two sided blade, and as it cut Blake, it cut Yang. The young Faunus did not want to leave her partner, but she did not want to burden her, either.

"I'm sorry," was her only answer to Ruby's question.

"I know," the girl said. "It's gonna be all right. Nobody's mad at you, Blake."

Thunder followed yet another flash, this clap quieter than the last, yet still Blake shook. She no longer saw the factory or the protest of her past but instead a new memory fraught with betrayal and incompetence. Was she so deeply entrenched in her own misery that she could act this way and others would accept her for it? Was she really so obviously depraved that her team expected something like this? It appeared so, and although Ruby had assured her that their team was still united, she had been wrong. There were people who begrudged Blake. There were members of the White Fang who remembered her, families of the lost who blamed her entity, and parents she had abandoned for nearly a decade. Moreover, she was afraid of herself and knew that all of this pain could be traced solely to her. The rest of the team might not have been mad at her, but Blake certainly was.

The Faunus shut her eyes, drying her tears against Ruby's given blanket and leaning silently against the supportive figure. She was no substitute for Yang and her inherent warmth, but the young girl did exude a feeling of care that was not dissimilar to her sister's.

In this distracted silence, Blake could not bear to move. Perhaps this was due to the immobilizing fear of never being accepted again or perhaps it was the regular, if reestablished guilt which had always kept her from sleep, but whatever the case, she clung to this fleeting vestige of humanization and hoped that she would not be alone. However and fortunately, her ears would soon rise from their downtrodden state at the sound of approaching footsteps. Immediately, she recognized her partner's gait but found that it came slower than expected—hesitantly even.

The comforting embrace was relinquished as Blake sat up, eyes opening again in reddened fear as she beheld the dizzying sight before her. To describe Yang's movements as a walk would be to place confidence where it was undue. She crept into the room, sliding slowly across the carpet beyond the entryway and hardly moving at all once she reached the kitchen's tile. It was at this point that she simply stared at Blake, a forlorn look in her eye as she nervously held her wound. The two would watch each other carefully, reducing themselves to mere children in this passive show of trepidation. Eventually, however, Yang would speak.

"Blake…" Her tone was penitent, voice low and scared. Her partner, however, had only heard the word and feared what was to follow. Was this castigation? Condemnation? Would Yang give up on her after this heinous act? It would be justified to be sure, Blake being one to understand the future of such betrayal, but she did not want Yang to leave. Fortunately, it was soon proven evident that this would not be the case. Blake found no time to entertain these self-destructive thoughts because she recoiled at the now approaching form of her would-be girlfriend. However, where the Faunus had expected reprisal, she found only warmth, and as Yang moved to wrap her partner in a one-armed hug, she whispered, "Blake, I'm so sorry."

Instinctively, Blake hugged back to the best of her ability, bringing with her the corners of her blanket as she held to Yang's chest. "I'm sorry," she murmured. "I…I didn't know what was happening. I didn't—"

"I know, kitten." The one hand Yang had allowed moved to cradle her partner's head, comfortingly holding the Faunus against her warmth and ending the notions of separation. "I know."

Unfortunately, it is not to say that this was the definitive end to Blake's worries. Rather, she saw trouble in the blonde's phrasing with "I know" being the crux of her apprehension. Yang did not accept the apology nor did she dismiss it in her usual, flippant way; she instead regarded it with an apparently practiced reply and avoided the subject altogether while drawing attention to the fact that her wounded arm hung unused at her side. She was holding on to this matter, brooding on it like Blake was, and avoided the apology entirely. She was hurt in more ways than physical, and while she was not outwardly hostile, Blake feared the worst. For this, the matter of diction choice, while inconsequential in most other circumstances, was not to be overlooked. Blake hugged tighter.

It was then that Weiss entered the room, bearing no pretenses of fatigue besides her pajamas and unenthused glower. Blake had only noticed this arrival due to the undeterred volume of her stride and as well the noise Ruby made in sitting up. "Yang," she all but barked, keeping her voice quiet enough to respect the hour but remaining firm with her chastising tone. She said nothing more with this, apparently content with the frowning look she received. Reluctantly, Yang escaped her partner's desperate hold and followed the heiress to the windowside sink, thereby leaving Blake alone.

Weiss placed a few items beside the sink, turned its faucet, and proceeded to focus on the idle girl beside her. "Look," she began, surprisingly more familiar than she usually was, "I know this is painful, but you must clean your wound. I let you see Blake again and gave you time to make up, so now it's time for you to pay your end of the bargain." Yang bowed her head, regretting the impending process but not outwardly refusing it. To this, Weiss sighed. "Clean yourself. It doesn't matter what's going on right now, just think of what will happen if you don't do as I say. You'll scar, and you'll have to live the rest of your life with the knowledge that you could have avoided it by simply taking care of yourself." Still Yang did not move, causing Weiss' expression to harden. "You have until the water runs warm. After that, if I find that you haven't listened to me, then I will have to take matters into my own hands." She gave Yang a final look of warning before leaving her and moving to the island.

She quickly found a seat across from her partner and sighed, her first show of lethargy since waking. Ruby perked at this, neither smiling nor remarking on this tell, and asked, "Power's still out?"

"I'd assume so."

"Well," the young girl seemed hesitant, "then how's Yang supposed to get hot water?"

Weiss raised an eyebrow. The answer seemed obvious to her. "She will get it how she normally does. Just because there's a power outage doesn't mean that the water has stopped."

"Yeah, I know that. But she's only going to get cold water out of there, right? I mean, what about the water heater?"

Weiss paused, realization suddenly dawning on her. "Oh," she said. "Right. I see your point." With another sigh, she turned back to Yang with the probable intent of amending her warnings; however, she stopped short of doing so upon seeing that Yang had already begun. The heiress did not smile, but she did seem content with the situation, and, as such, she turned back to her girlfriend. "She'll be fine. Better to have cold water than none at all."

Ruby nodded with an unconvinced frown. "You're probably right. It's just a pretty bad time for the power to go out."

"Yeah," Weiss quietly agreed.

Nothing more was said on the matter as silence overcame the seated three. The hiss of water and the resultant laps against Yang's arm were the only sounds this team made as rain continued to batter against the roof. Thankfully, the thunder had quieted and amounted now to only faraway grumbles, but the events of the past hour did still linger. Had everyone been accepting of one another and entirely forgiving of what had been done, then they would all be asleep again, playing the ignorant roles they thus far expressed. However, they were awake now and willingly so, and it felt as if another trial faced the Faunus with Weiss acting as prosecutor. But this had been expected one way or another. Everyone wanted answers about what had happened and sought closure to the wound which had opened amongst their team.

The girl in white seemed poised to investigate, posture rigid as per usual and eyes trained warily on her teammate ahead. However, this critical demeanor seemed justified to Blake and, quite frankly, preferable to the inquiries of legitimate courts she could possibly be tried in. Though the young Faunus did not entirely understand everything that had happened, she was ready for whatever Weiss had to say.

"Are you all right?"

This was not the beginning she had expected. It was calm, friendly, and, most surprisingly of all, Weiss' speech lacked hostility. Though Blake was scared and uncertain about this coming talk, she did nod and allowed Weiss her answer.

Unfortunately, this proved inadequate. "Use your words," Weiss said. "We're dealing with a difficult subject right now, and I'd rather you not hide behind nods and shakes. So, I'll ask again. Are you all right?"

No. The answer was no. Everything was a mess and the Faunus hated everything she had become. She did not know what would happen to her partnership or relationship, whether or not she would be able to attend Beacon with this weight on her mind, and she furthermore could not tell what time it was. She closed her eyes and breathed, attempting a now antiquated ritual of her own design. "I'll be fine," she eventually said. "Yang's the one I need to worry about right now."

She was given an appraising look under the low light of their surroundings. However, Weiss did not refute this answer. She instead shook her head and moved closer to the table, consequently influencing Ruby to act similarly. "She is," concurred the heiress. "I trust that Ruby told you of her condition? Of how she'll recover?"

Blake began to nod but stopped and answered, "Yes."

"It's not often that I hear of a hunter or huntress being attacked by their partner. And I hesitate to use the word 'attack' because of its premeditated connotations, but we shouldn't avoid the matter at hand. I can't speak on behalf of Yang—honestly, you and Ruby are the authorities on her—but someone does need to speak, and if you're incapacitated and Ruby is thrown off by her inherent bias, then that leaves me. So, like it or not, you attacked Yang, and I'd like to know why."

"Hey!" Ruby chided, a rare frown comprising her features. "Don't be mean. She said she didn't mean to do it. I wanna know what happened just as much as you do, but we don't have to be jerks about it."

"No, Ruby, it's all right," Blake sighed. Her eyes lowered to focus on the countertop. "I'd like to know why, too, but I just…don't."

"You don't know?" Weiss' question was not as astonished as Blake had expected, but tonight did see a notably different side of her than what was generally typical. "Well, I suppose if you did, you'd be either apologizing profusely or running to your next station." She glanced at Ruby, giving an apologetic frown before turning back. "I don't mean to offend you and I'm certainly not pointing fingers—it's far too soon for that—but I'd like to make sure that this attack wasn't intentional. I hope that this is the case, but you of all people should understand where my doubts are coming from."

"She's not with the White Fang." The three turned to the source of this comment, finding that the running water had slowed to a whispering trickle. Yang moved to face her team, a hurt, angry look focused on Weiss. "Not anymore."

The heiress took a moment to respond, shakenly paused by the glaring challenge. "I don't doubt it," she said slowly, easing away from the protective glower. "But that doesn't rule out the matter of intentionality. Perhaps this wasn't a direct order from the White Fang, but I'd be surprised if it wasn't a result of her conditioning. Perhaps it wasn't that at all and perhaps it was simply an overreaction—we've all had our share." Yang returned to the sink as Weiss hesitantly turned back to the island. "Whatever the case, something happened, and if attacking Yang was in any way deliberate, I'd like to know. I worry that it may happen again."

Blake moved to lean on the counter, arms folded in front of her as she buried her head in the shielding darkness. "I don't know," she tried. Once again, Ruby moved to rub her back, a reassuringly cyclical action which eventually calmed her down enough to resume her speech. "I was having a nightmare, and when I woke up, I found Yang on top of me with my sword in her arm." Though she could not see it, this piqued Weiss' interest. "I didn't know what was happening or why or even where I was, but when I came to, what I saw was…wrong." She peeked out from her shadows. "I didn't mean to hurt her. I'd never do something like that. It's just…something came over me."

"I believe you." Had Blake the confidence, she would have smiled, but in this worried moment she could only nod to this comment. "I wouldn't think that you of all people would consciously attack Yang—you're much too attached to do such a thing. But, then again, I suppose you've always been a bit paranoid."

"Weiss!"

"Ruby, she attacked your sister. No matter what she thought or why it happened, it doesn't change the fact that she tried to kill Yang."

"Yeah, but she didn't mean to!" the young girl argued. "I mean, yeah, I'm upset that it happened, but I don't think Blake's, like, a double agent or anything. She just said that something came over her, so I don't really think she meant to do it. And Yang's tough! It's not like she was _actually_ going to get hurt."

"She wasn't playing with a toy, Ruby. If you swing a sword—"

"Somebody gets hurt. Yeah, I know that. But Blake wasn't trying to hurt her. She was just…scared!" Ruby turned to the Faunus beside her, seeking affirmation or, in the possible case that she was mistaken, forgiveness. However, she was right, and Blake communicated this with a nod. "See? We're a team, Weiss! That means that we stick together no matter what. If Blake says she didn't mean it, then she didn't mean it. And you even said it yourself that you believe her! Yang doesn't think she meant it, you don't think she meant it, and I don't think she meant it. If we all don't think she meant it, then what's the problem?"

"The problem is tendency. We don't know if she is going to do something like this again, but I'd wager that if she did it once, she could do it a second time and perhaps even a third or fourth. You and I are nowhere near as strong as Yang is, so if Blake were to attack us in our sleep, I'm afraid that this flawless 'team' ideal you have will shatter." Ruby frowned, having no response to give. "Not only do I have to worry about my own life and wellbeing, I have to worry about yours now, too. If something were to happen to you because of my negligence, then the blame would be placed solely on me. And being that I'm your partner—and girlfriend for that matter—losing you would be an unrecoverable loss."

It was then that the running faucet was pulled to a sudden stop. The three looked to Yang in varying states of concern, finding her leaning over the sink's bath and growling a castrated whimper low in her throat. Her bandage was wrapped and her arm went uncoddled yet her pain still lingered. Even Weiss, distant and aversive though she was, found herself silenced by the struggle portrayed.

Blake, however, wanted to help. That is, she had wanted to but simply could not. She had, after all, been the one to swing the sword, so this pain, physical or not, was entirely her fault. Yang was the strongest person she had ever known and as well the only person capable of withstanding life-threatening blows to only return with greater fervor, but now she was scared, hurt, breached. Her shield had been broken and her aura ignored, and now this fiery youth who had always been enthusiastic about everything she did was left broken and whimpering. And it was all Blake's fault.

Weiss sighed, assumingly aware of her negativity's effect. "You're right," she admitted. "I am being mean." Though her speech had been directed towards Ruby, Blake knew that it was meant for her instead. However, she could not remove herself from the sight of Yang—she was shuddering and shaking and becoming a dolorous mimicry of her usual self, and Blake simply wanted to hold her. "Blake?" It would take two more calls of this kind before the Faunus responded. She glanced at Weiss, her frown meeting the heiress' own. "I'm sorry," the girl in white said. "My intent was not to offend you, but if I did, I apologize."

"It's…" Blake shook her head. "It's fine."

"No, it's not. You and Yang were the only ones involved in the ordeal, and this is not the time for my self-concerned worries." Though Blake could not see it, Ruby smiled at her partner's words, an encouraging smirk just quiet enough to guide the heiress back on to her intended course of action. "I'd meant to ask you how this all happened, but I digressed. And I'm sorry for that. However, if you wouldn't mind, I would still like to find the root of the matter so that we can pluck it and never have to deal with this situation again."

Once more the Faunus averted her gaze. She was ashamed of the answer, mortified at her own cowardice, and while Weiss had expected a singular issue with an immediate means of recovery, Blake knew only inconsolable pain. "It's…not that simple."

"It rarely is."

"Fine." She acquiesced. If she had been able to tell her parents about the extent of her damages, then Ruby and Weiss could know, too. Veritably, they were now as much a part of her family as her parents were, being that her life was in their hands and would continue to be for the coming few years. "It started with a dream," she began, voice low and tone reverent. "I've held this dream with me no matter where I go or how far away I run. It's…my biggest regret, the reason why I ran."

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Yang rise, turning to meet her partner's somber gaze with a silent apology. Blake bowed her head and turned back to her teammates. "I joined the White Fang when I was eight. At that time, I was honestly more scared of what could happen to me than what actually was—I saw pain where there wasn't any and pursued it as though it were expected of me. I ran away from home and found refuge with the organization, and I did this all because of a few pages of propaganda. But I was wrong, and I know that now. Sierra's always been a sanctuary for the Faunus—the people there are accepting and it's not too far away from the border—and to go out and involve myself in a war I had no business fighting was foolish. But I did it anyway and spent the next decade leashed by my White Fang masters."

Yang moved away from the sink and now inched towards the island, holding her arm all the while and ensuring that her partner permitted her approach. Blake simply watched her, disgusted at the results of her own actions. She sighed. "That being said, I can't say I'd take those years back if I could. I do regret some of the things I did and there are nights where I can't sleep because of them, but if I didn't subject myself to this past decade, then I wouldn't be where I am now." It was nearly invisible, but Yang's approach hastened.

"So, what was your dream about?" Ruby asked. "Like, was it about home or something?"

The Faunus shook her head.

"It was about your departure, wasn't it?" Now it was the heiress' turn to guess. "The moment when you realized you could move on with your life and become a normal member of society?"

Yang stepped forward, brushing against her partner's shoulder before nervously pulling away. She shook her head, answering the question alongside the Faunus. "It's about that thing you talked about, right? That time when you…you know, messed up?" She was scared of admitting it. Truthfully, she was likely scared of Blake, but she had nevertheless been right.

This received a nod. Yang frowned.

"I'll try to spare you the details," Blake told her unaware teammates. "That way, you'll be at less of a risk if burned bridges rebuild themselves." Before Yang, she had feared the possibility of her dissociation coming to a sudden, violent end. And although the blonde had kept her from thinking such things for a long time now, the fact remained that Blake was still a liability to someone in the organization. "I was never a soldier for the White Fang. I was never a protester or speaker like I'd wanted to be and I never did grunt work. I wrote propaganda, gathered intelligence, spied on whomever I was told to, and…I even stole what I was ordered to. But I was never a soldier. I was trained to be a leader—_the_ leader."

Out of everyone else, Ruby seemed the most surprised. Perhaps this was due to the revelation of similar titles—it was likely that the young girl saw her teammate now as a potential learning experience. Unfortunately, Blake had never been the model of leadership ability and therefore had nothing to offer in the way of advice. Weiss' expression, however, was unreadable; though, it was probable that she was unenthused by the attempted rank. She would undoubtedly be able to recognize Blake's subtext and likely realized how close they had come to being life-long enemies of each other. Of course, these two looks were entirely understandable.

Yang's, however, was painful. In Blake's eyes, she was torn between disappointment and sympathy, hesitant to stay yet obliged to care. Blake had hurt her because of this leadership training, and all she wanted to do now was retreat into her partner's arms, but a dark patch had begun to spread across her bandage and made this wish impossible. The blonde could not bring herself to meet her girlfriend's eyes, let alone touch her shoulder for the briefest of moments. Confident, bold Yang Xiao Long had been reduced to a timid child, and it was all Blake's fault.

The blonde now stood at the end of the island nearest her partner and Weiss, avoiding their gazes altogether as she spoke. "You were talking in your sleep." The Faunus' brows knitted in confusion. "You were mumbling about something and trying to get away from me."

"I…" She was? Was the damage truly that noticeable?

"Yeah," Yang sighed. "You were…saying you couldn't breathe." Immediately, Blake recognized the connection. "Truth be told, it might have been the scariest thing I've ever seen. You just kept saying it and trying to get away, and I didn't know if you were actually having a hard time breathing or if I was—"

Fortunately, Yang's self-indulgent rationalizations were cut off as Weiss raised an eyebrow and hummed. "If that's not a window into your psyche, I don't know what is." The sisters turned to her. Ruby seemed confused while Yang was struck willfully silent. "It takes a special kind of distress to make a person talk in their sleep, and I can only imagine what must have happened to make you of all people act this way."

Distress—that was the word. It could make the most stoic of expressions falter and the most resilient of shields crumble absolutely. Compounded over years, months, days, it could spur a reaction—a dream, a question, a fight—and this reaction would, itself, echo through the delicate silence of one's doubtful monologue. It was painful to feel and more so to observe, but only by the historical interruptions of Yang had the chained distress been halted. Blake was grateful for this rescue, but concurrently she understood that the breakage of routine could too end negatively. The monologue had manifested into something raw, something abstract, and this abstractness had found the Faunus in her weakest state. She had bowed to the storm and knelt to the thunder, and when her unconscious servitude was halted by the warmth of her partner, she had attacked.

However, Ruby had been wrong. This truly was who Blake believed herself to be—the attack had not been a defensive instinct against the ghosts of failure but instead her own fear of the White Fang being wrong. Her loyalty had once been with the organization and still the deepest facets of her unconscious mind reflected this fealty. She had been conditioned to think a certain way about humanity, and because of this, she had projected an image of her partner being knelt before a prejudiced trial.

"I watched Yang die."

Their reactions had been as expected. "What?" Ruby yelped, her dismissive confidence vanishing instantly. Weiss simply inhaled as her assumptions were proven correct. However, neither of these effects meant much to the Faunus.

Yang hesitated. Although she had hardly been moving in the first place, her expression of fear now worsened to the point of staggering epiphany. She looked to her partner, eyes begging for the statement to be false, but Blake could only look back and beg for forgiveness. They still cared for each other and Blake knew this now, but to be told of one's own demise and to see the resulting effects—especially when the perspective was that of protective warmth—was simply unthinkable. Her movements were reluctant yet necessary, frightened but wanted, and as she drifted towards her partner's form, Blake moved similarly. But as the Faunus perked and melted into the coming hug that would wash away all her stresses and insecurities, Yang left.

She moved in a hurry, eschewing her awkward attempt and leaving the Faunus cold as she exited the kitchen and disappeared into the darkness beyond.

A pit formed in Blake's stomach. She wanted to cry at this separation and to reach out to her retreating partner, but between questions of reason and introspection on character, she found only breath-hitching emptiness. Her eyes trained on where Yang had gone, trying to part the shadows of the living room and see where the girl went, but even her innate abilities, both semblance and vision, could not pierce the veil of inexistence. She had attacked her and now Yang was gone.

A graveled sigh was released from across the table. Though Blake could not remove her gaze from the sight of abandonment, Ruby watched as Weiss stood and sent her chair back with a noisy skitter. The heiress grumbled something incomprehensible while Ruby tried to stop her, but just as quickly as the chair had been pushed away, Weiss entered the Faunus' vision and followed after Yang. "Weiss!" the young girl called, shaking her remaining teammate from her woebegone stupor. "Weiss, just let her go! She'll be fine!" But Yang was not fine—she was hurt in more ways than one and likely saw her partner as the mangy stray she truly was.

"Yang!" the heiress barked, voice unfortunately distinct from as far away as the hall. "Where do you think you're going?" Blake could hear every word, every step, every attempt at a doorknob, and every slap on the wrist. "What are you doing? Yang, what are you—Hey! Look at me!"

Ruby moved to stand, obviously uncomfortable with the way her partner and sister were acting, but with a single glance at Blake, she stopped. The young Faunus was a mere thought away from pulling her hair out again and now shivered in the cold of her blanket, replaying the final moments of her dream in an endless loop. For this, the young girl could not move. Her unstated creed of help without question was now tried by greyness and halted by adherence. Weiss was accosting her sister but Blake was silently afraid, and while there was the probability of conflict arising from the upcoming squabble, Blake was alone and both girls knew this. Blake watched as Ruby resigned to her position, quieting her teammate's shivers as she hugged her again.

A quiet thud resonated through the house. "What do you think you're doing?" Weiss asked again. Ruby's presence was thankfully able to muffle most of the unwanted sounds, but from what Blake could hear, the heiress did not seem hostile. She was, perhaps, exasperated at the taller girl's actions and disbelieving of this change in character, but by no means was she malevolent. "I said, what do you think you're doing?"

A short, wordless mumble was all her reply.

"Don't you have anything to say for yourself? You just walked out on your team during a time of crisis. I think that warrants some kind of apology."

Yang's voice was quiet, defeated, yet still Blake could hear her between walls and distance and thankful distraction. "I…just needed to give her some space."

"That's your excuse for leaving? You needed to give Blake space?" The heiress scoffed. "In case you couldn't tell, there's a situation going on right now that requires your specific attention. Your partner is in pain and you've been attacked, yet we don't know why. If that doesn't necessitate some amount of taken responsibility, then I frankly don't know what to say." The two in the kitchen and the third in the hall waited on the fourth to speak up. Unfortunately, Yang would not. "Nothing?" prodded Weiss. "You have nothing at all to say? Brilliant. Just amazing. You're a coward, you know that? You've never taken responsibility when a situation gets out of hand. Instead, you choose to run away. It's a wonder how Ruby's still able to function with a role model as spineless as you."

"Watch it." It was a wan attempt at aggression. For every aggressive step forward, Yang's voice took two more back to avoid total collapse. "I took care of her—I took responsibility for her—"

"Yes, you did. But are you now? Are you taking care of your sister now? What about your partner? What about your home? Does anything mean anything to you?"

"I…"

"Yes, 'I.' That's all you ever think about, isn't it? You don't care that Blake is traumatized, you don't care that Ruby's awake at four in the morning, but you certainly care about yourself, don't you?" Weiss was wrong, Blake thought. She could not be further from the truth, yet still she argued. "Just because you suffered a minor flesh wound doesn't mean you can act like a child. You can't throw a fit because things aren't going your way and you can't run off whenever the situation becomes the slightest bit difficult. That's what Blake does. But do you see her here? Do you see her running away from you?" Weiss waited. "Answer."

"No," the blonde mumbled.

"Exactly. She and your sister are sitting out there, trying to come to terms with what happened while you're in here, shutting yourself away. Whether you like it or not, they look up to you, and when people look up to you, you don't get to enjoy the luxury of taking breaks."

"You don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, I don't? Of course not. How could I? No, I'm just a spoiled brat who spends her days resting on her old-money laurels because 'Daddy' can take care of everything." As sarcastic as she was, Weiss was beginning to make sense to the Faunus. Blake would, of course, side with Yang regardless of intent, but the heiress' point was now revealing itself. Belligerence was not her purpose in arguing but instead the excessive slap on the wrist she had been known for. "No, I do know what I'm talking about. I make no illusions about being a good person, let alone a decent one, but if there's one thing that I understand with all my being, it's loyalty.

"Ruby is your sister and you owe her more than you could ever repay. You owe her the reassurance that this cut on your arm is nothing and you owe her the promise that you're still strong. She looks up to you more than anyone else, but if you think this influence is somehow going to slip because you let your guard down _one_ time, you're an even bigger idiot than I thought you were. You're only hurting your relationships by running away. By running away, you're giving Ruby the chance to think that you don't care about her and that you really are weak. By being here, you're only proving that you're the same child I've always thought you were and not the superhero-deity she _still_ thinks you are.

"And Blake? You just abandoned your partner. First offense or not, that's grounds for expulsion. And in addition to that, you have her worried sick out there, wondering whether you'll come back or not. Now, I don't know about you, but giving someone you actually care for the cold shoulder is in astonishingly poor taste."

"Shut up," Yang grumbled. "Shut up." A faint rise in temperature flooded the house for the briefest of moments, alerting the two in the kitchen to the burgeoning frustration. "I don't want to hear it! You think just because you're calm about the whole thing means you get to tell me what to do? I know it's my fault and I know it's wrong to run away, but do you honestly think that me being out there is better than leaving them alone? I caused all of that—all of that pain—and if I stick around, who knows what else I'll do?

"I'm a liability, Weiss, and whenever I get emotional, I can't control myself. If I get mad, Blake gets burned. If I get sad, Ruby has to spend an hour dealing with me. And whenever I get scared, I only mess things up." Another wave of heat suffused the house, making the blanket stifling and Ruby's hug weaken. However, both would remain resolute. "You wanna know why Blake attacked me? Because she was scared. She was scared because I was scared, and when I'm scared, I mess things up. I shook her awake and tried shouting things at her, and you know what happened? All that White Fang trauma just blew up in my face." Suddenly, the heat vanished and the same cold from before spread across the house. Rain became the predominant noise again and Yang had returned to a whisper, trying no longer to fight the heiress but instead herself. "She attacked me because I wasn't strong enough to break through. If I get expelled for this, I'd probably deserve it. If I can't save her from a nightmare, then what kind of partner am I?"

Blake's first thought in regard to this admission was admittedly something of a relief, being that Yang was blaming herself rather than her partner, but after a moment, the gravity of this revelation took hold and the Faunus realized what had been said. Yang had doubted herself before. She thought that she was not smart enough for her partner, strong enough for her sister, and she seemed to believe that her abandonment by multiple figures in her life had been of her own doing. She did not see Blake as an assailant skilled in the art of betrayal but instead she saw herself as a weak shield-bearer who deserved the wounds of her incompetence. This was not true, but it was what she believed, and despite her partner's promise to never leave, Yang was still scared.

"Oh, quit it with the melodramatics." It seemed as though Weiss was not as lenient towards the blonde. "You're still not listening to me. This isn't about you anymore. You already had your chance to feel sad, but then you walked out on Ruby and Blake. You hurt them. Don't you see how selfish that is? Don't you realize that your actions have consequences?"

Yang was silent.

"You have to take responsibility for what you've done. I'm not blaming anyone for anything, but you must realize that because you walked out on Blake, you've caused an even greater upset. You two have become disgustingly inseparable, and though it's not my place to judge how you go about your relationship, you can't deny that you've become dependent on each other. And if you are saying that you're willing to be expelled because of your own 'failure,' then you're saying that you'll let Blake fail, too."

If Blake knew Yang correctly, it was likely that they held similar expressions. Weiss was right and this had been a long-denied truth. Though Blake had lost her edge to defend her guiding morals, her personal strength had since grown hundredfold beside her partner's warmth. For either to retreat from their symbiotic bond would be to deprive them of confidence and calm, leaving them torn in a way neither memories nor reactionary cuts could ever hope to mimic. Perhaps it was excessive to think so, but she and Yang were bound to each other out of necessity so to supplement their shortfalls and eliminate their anxieties. She did not blame Yang for running—she would have done it, herself—but now that this empty feeling had been defined and an understanding gleaned as to why she clung to Ruby, Blake felt oddly at ease—worried, of course, about Yang's cut and the implications thereof, but calm nevertheless.

"She's afraid, Yang; as are you. I can't help you and Ruby can't help her. You two are the only ones who can help each other, but the only way you can do that is by taking responsibility when the situation turns dour." Weiss sighed, losing her hostile tone. "Look, I don't enjoy seeing you like this—I'm just going to be honest. We're not the best of friends and I doubt we ever will be, but seeing you moping about and running from your problems is uncharacteristic. I owe you for letting me date Ruby, I will admit you that, but this goes beyond recompense. We're a team, and we all have to pull our weight if we want to succeed as such."

Weiss paused, volume shifting somewhat as though she had turned directions. "Shape up," she evenly said. "You have a role to fill, and you won't be able to play it if you can't pull yourself together. Go see Blake. Apologize. Attend to Ruby. Do what you can to rectify the situation, and I'll be with you shortly."

There was a pause. "Go," she insisted. "I'm not mad at you—not yet, at any rate."

A few moments of palpable hesitation loomed over Team RWBY, threatening conflict if Weiss' words proved unsuccessful, but this shadow would thankfully pass as Yang accepted with a conceding sigh. "Okay," she quietly relented before shuffling away.

In a matter of seconds, she reentered the Faunus' vision and was immediately met with a tentative smile. She was still shaken, clutching at her arm for more emotional stability than physical, but her own uncertain smirk would nevertheless grow to match her partner's. Though it was incomparable to the grins of her past, Blake was happy to see even this glimpse of Yang again. Once more the Faunus disengaged from her leader and hugged the approaching blonde. She was warm again and sorry, and as they muttered their I-love-yous and held one another close, Blake knew that everything would be all right. There was still yet pain to endure, but everything would be all right in the end.

The two would soon release each other and move to their seats. Yang sat across from her partner, eyes trained on her wary amber and hands held firmly as though the act of relinquishing them would set the couple on a path apart. This was a separate side of Yang which Blake had never seen. Her movements were hasty, her convictions seemed fragile, and she lacked the easy confidence which had characterized her so. But she had returned and was now recovering, so Blake could not complain. No matter what had happened between them, they would work it out.

Weiss returned soon after. Similar to before, she was carrying a few items with her as she entered, but Blake could not tell what they were this time—her gaze, after all, was meant for Yang alone and therefore amounted to a mere glance at her assisting friend. But as the heiress set her belongings beside the young girl, the Faunus could not help but watch.

The action was not meant to interrupt Blake or Yang's affections but instead to allow for her own. At first, Ruby seemed mildly shocked as Weiss' arms coiled around her neck and pulled her back into a hug. However, in the uncertain few moments after the heiress simply nestled her head in Ruby's hair, the young girl realized what was going on. With a cheery smile, she moved to hold her partner's forearms, nuzzling upwards and giggling quietly at the unexpected turn of events. Weiss had changed since this summer began. She was still cold and authoritarian, but now she limited her outbursts to those who required them. She acted friendlier towards Blake, kinder towards Yang, and generally happier when around Ruby. Judging by the brief, almost genuine smirk Yang sent to her partner, Blake knew that they were both happy for the newer couple.

The mood had lifted significantly in the wake of these most pressing matters, and even as Weiss pulled away from her once again chipper leader, the mood stayed aloft. "Light this, will you?" she asked, placing a jarred candle and lighter before the young girl. She then turned to Blake and Yang, arms still wrapped around her partner. "We have a bit of discussion left to go, answers to glean and such, but before we resume, I'm going to make coffee and tea. Blake, you don't have any choice in the matter; you need to relax. Yang, do you have any preference?"

"Um…" Were the moment unburdened by dreams and outbursts, Blake would expect some jabbing quip about Weiss' offered service, but because the moment was anything but regular, she could only answer, "I'll have coffee."

Weiss nodded. "Ruby?"

The young girl paused in her attempts at working the lighter to give a considered look. "I think…I think I'll try some tea. What kind is it?"

"A special blend." Weiss turned to Blake. "It will help you get back to sleep."

"Yeah, I'll try some then. Thanks, Weiss!"

The hug shared between the younger partnership tightened for the briefest of moments before Weiss departed entirely, leaving Ruby to her candle while moving to prepare their drinks. As she passed, however, Weiss gave the Faunus a glancing smile which Blake returned as best she could. Regardless of politics or disparities in inheritance, they were friends and Weiss did understand loyalty.

With an eventual click and snap, a spark escaped the young girl's lighter and found the candle's wick. A flame emerged and burgeoned into a tiny fire which cast both a warm glow across the surrounding three and a shadow on their previous doubts. Yang squeezed her partner's hands tighter, a warmth of her own flowing through their embrace to ensure the Faunus' safety. Blake squeezed back and Ruby smiled at her accomplishment and Weiss moved to put a kettle on, and all the while Team RWBY found peace amongst each other despite this onerous hour.

Coffee became the heiress' next priority as her teammates gathered around the fire. There had been a moment of reflection when Blake had wanted to question this sudden enterprise and assistance, but before she could discredit her teammate's kindness, its effects became evident. A faintly noticeable scent wafted through the air, and as the familiar fragrance grew with the Faunus' awareness, she realized that it came from the candle. It was chamomile and relaxing. Or perhaps it was lavender and therefore smelled of home. Or it could have been both and an intentional joke at Blake and Yang's expense. Whatever the case, it was immediately calming and thankfully distracting. Yang seemed to enjoy it, too, and her gradually softening smile expressed this clearly. Ruby still grinned as she did before, but now that Blake had a more substantial source of light to utilize, she could see that the young girl was also shivering in the cold of the room. This simply would not do.

Blake did not do what she did for Yang's sake or to thank Weiss for bringing the blonde back, but instead the Faunus wanted to thank the young girl directly. She pulled one hand away from her partner and moved to open the covering on her shoulders, inviting Ruby to share the blanket in a previously uncharacteristic show of trust. And though the young leader seemed initially confused by the gesture's meaning, she would eventually accept, pulling her chair closer to Blake's and pressing up against her teammate's side. This received a grateful smile from Yang as the Faunus' arm wrapped around Ruby to shield her appropriately.

Soon enough, Weiss would return with the four cups promised and quickly distributed them with practiced ease. She sat beside Yang as they all cradled their drinks, removing their grips from one another and simply relaxing against the reprieve they were given. Yang watched the heiress warily for a moment but quickly chose to relent upon seeing that she, too, shook from the cold. A wave of heat radiated from the blonde as she sipped at her coffee, and one wave would become two and two would become a constant stream of warmth that livened the kitchen considerably.

"Thank you," the heiress offered quietly.

"Don't mention it." In most cases, this could be construed as a normal response Yang could give, but because of her lingering doubts and the most recent conflict the two had engaged in, this was as much a plea as it was a reassurance.

Ruby tried to sip at her tea but only winced when the scalding liquid touched her lips. Nevertheless, she tried again and again and received the same result each time. This enthusiasm only made Blake aware of her own cup, and upon her observance of the earthy brew, she found that her entire team had calmed substantially. Weiss no longer glared at the blonde, Ruby no longer shivered, and Yang no longer seemed hesitant about being around her partner. Her arm was still bandaged and these bandages would soon need to be changed, but she seemed happier now that that conflict had ended—happier, but not entirely happy.

With a small, resounding _clink_, Weiss set her cup down, glancing at the Faunus. "Now," she began again, "where were we?"

Some part of Blake had wanted to sigh. However, she knew that it was just as much her responsibility to inform her teammates of her past atrocities as it was Yang's to take care of her friends. Weiss did not smile nor did she show signs of excitement for the conversation to come, yet she guided the discussion regardless for the sake of their team's integrity. "We can skip the dream and the events preceding the attack, but we must address the cause of it all so that we don't find ourselves lost if another outburst takes place." Blake agreed.

"You joined the White Fang when you were eight, correct? How long after did it take for you to realize that they were wrong?"

"They weren't wrong—"

"Perhaps not; perhaps they were as misguided as you say. But the fact of the matter is that they are wrong now and there was a point between now and when you were eight when you realized this."

Blake sighed, finding momentary refuge in the warmth of her tea. The question posed was reasonable enough. After all, she had asked herself similar things when considering her departure. However, there was no particular moment which pointed to an aggregate shift in morality—no, it was a gradual decline into villainy rather than a sudden shift as many seemed to forget. But this was not what Weiss was asking. Instead, she wondered when Blake finally understood that her beloved organization was more deplorable than the oppressors she fought—she wondered when Blake realized the White Fang had become the source of dissent rather than fighters against it. This was an easier question to find an answer for.

Again, the Faunus sighed. "I think it was five years after—I was thirteen at the time. Truthfully, I was a few days away from fourteen, but that still makes it five years ago." She measured her breaths and took another sip and decided that if not the dream, her team deserved to know about its source material. "I told you how I was trained to be some sort of a leader? Well, that wasn't entirely accurate. I _was_ a leader for a short time and commanded a platoon of White Fang militants—thirty of them, myself included. I don't know why they started me off so early or what potential they saw in me, but somehow I proved that I was capable enough to become the youngest lieutenant in White Fang history."

"Wow," Ruby gasped. "Thirty people when you were only thirteen? I still have trouble with four!"

It was simply a joke, and though Yang and Weiss gave appeasing smirks, Blake could not. "Ruby, it's nothing to be proud of. You were given a leadership role because you deserve it and because you are competent at it. But I was neither. I was…not cut out to take responsibility for another person's life, let alone twenty-nine."

The young girl could only reply with an accepting "Oh" before returning to her cup. Blake continued. "We'd been garrisoning a factory in a town at the foot of the Madrigal Hills. Our goal was to take it over while instating White Fang leadership and ideals in the area. That being said, the town itself wasn't too important; it didn't give the White Fang any advantage except strategic. We were there to protest for better working conditions, equal opportunities for Faunus workers, and every other lie we were fed. But realistically, we were trying to gain a foothold in as many border towns as we could to ensure an operational advantage when descending upon Vale proper—no one was supposed to get in, no one was supposed to get out.

"And it worked for the most part. Word never got to Vale, we never faced an insurrection, and the tribes beyond the hills had no stake in our war. That's really what it was: war. We tried to be covert about it and not make too much of a scene, but…" she looked to Weiss, "the most enthusiastic among us couldn't handle the silence."

"It's fine," the heiress assured. "My family's losses have only occurred in Atlas. I'm sure you had no hand in what happened while you were here in Vale."

She had meant casualties. No member of the Schnee family had ever been killed or injured outside of Atlesian soil. Furthermore, none whatsoever had been plotted against since the construction of their veritable citadel on Kaiser Island. But by no means was Weiss correct in assuming Blake had never played a part in her family's loss. "Yeah," the Faunus sighed, turning the subject back to her past. "But I'm not innocent, either. Not whatsoever.

"During the first couple days, we didn't encounter much resistance at all. It was a weekend when we first occupied the factory, so no one was expected to be there until the Monday after. But when that Monday came, we began to dread the 'small town' misnomer." Yang watched her critically, apparently ready to pounce at any sign of weakness. As stressful as the story being told was, Blake found herself wanting to smile at Yang's presence and returned care. She did not prove able to after all, but the feeling did exist. "I never really appreciated how large a number 10,000 is until I found about half that many knocking on the factory's gates. It was strange. At first there was a crowd of twenty or so that came, and they were simply curious as to why they couldn't enter their place of employment. But after one of my sergeants told them why they couldn't work, half of the town descended on us. They were swarming—we had to bar the gates, put up barricades, and arm ourselves until our speaker arrived."

This was met with a raised brow from the heiress. Blake explained, "My goal in taking the factory was not to invade the town. The White Fang hasn't operated like that until only recently. My goal was to hold the factory and stage a false strike against the corporation that ran it, winning the workers over and holding our position until a White Fang speaker could arrive. He was supposed to finalize the conversion of the townspeople to the Faunus Rights cause and would, ideally, serve as the town's temporary governor while the other border towns were being seized. At that time, we still wanted to win over the hearts of the opposition and turn them against each other, and while I know it's reprehensible, it seemed justified at the time."

"But you didn't account for human error," Weiss conjectured.

Blake shook her head. "It wasn't just human error. Faunus aren't exempt from failure, either, and I think me being in charge proved that fairly well." The heiress sipped her coffee with an amused smirk as she bade the Faunus to continue.

"I don't know if there were actually 5,000 people at the factory's gates, but there were a lot and they appeared faster than I'd believed they could. I gave the orders I was told to give: I sent one squad to pacify the people at the gates and also watch for anyone who tried to jump the fence, I sent another to back them up and prepare for the speaker's arrival, and I held the third back in reserve just in case anyone got through. At the time, I thought it was a sound tactic, but, as you said, I didn't account for human error.

"It was raining and it was cold and there was even a storm that loomed over the factory, but none of us could stop our operation. I guess the rain made everyone angrier because the more my soldiers tried to talk to the townspeople, the more frustrated both sides became. It eventually came to the point of rifles being brandished and the gates being rattled, but by then, I just couldn't control the situation anymore. There were 5,000 angry townspeople just trying to get into their factory, and we were inciting them by waving around guns which were not supposed to be there in the first place.

"I was never told about our given arms—I was given a pistol for the first time and they told me to only use it if the situation went awry, but I didn't expect everyone else to be as armed as they were. As soon as the gates started to shake and the rain began to fall, it stopped being a protest. It was suddenly a standoff that would go on for as long as it needed to, and we were to hold out until the speaker arrived."

"But wait. How didn't you know they had guns? Weren't you in charge of them?" asked Ruby. "I mean, I get that you were nervous and stuff, but how'd you miss something like that?"

"I didn't know them—I didn't know any of them. Honestly, I didn't even know I'd be stationed in southern Vale the day before I left." The Faunus sighed. "The White Fang depends on a cell-type structure and a purposefully obscuring chain of command. We weren't an army and we didn't have the resources to be caught, so the information we were given had to be limited to what was required for the mission. Squads would have months to get to know each other, but beyond the rank of sergeant, members start to become less and less familiar with one another and more modular in how they operate. Squads knew their immediate lieutenant but couldn't point out who ranked higher than them or who another lieutenant was. Lieutenants knew their captains and captains knew their majors and so on and so forth.

"Unfortunately, it's a system dependent upon trust, and when you're a thirteen-year-old girl in command of twenty-something-year-old extremist zealots, trust is hard to come by." Ruby moved to argue this point, likely attempting to convince Blake that she was worthy of trust, but she was preemptively cut off. "I was always the 'Chosen One,' the prodigy, the favorite student of one of the White Fang's senior leaders. No one I commanded trusted me because I was always placed on a pedestal and because I had no real-world experience. Before the factory, I generally worked alone, but then I was suddenly thrown into a leadership position with people under my command who I didn't know. I couldn't tell if they were armed because that wasn't important to my mission and, regardless, they wouldn't have trusted me enough to give me that information. All I was told to do was keep the area secured."

"But you didn't, did you?" asked Weiss. "We wouldn't be having this conversation if it was a glory days story."

Blake shook her head. "I let them down," she sighed, voice dipping into wistful remorse. "I couldn't get a grip on the situation, and by the time the speaker arrived…everything sort of just fell apart."

She wanted to tell them, they deserved to know. But how does one verbalize her greatest fears? How would one persuade another that her experience matters despite the absurdity of it all? How could one interweave a series of traumatizing stimuli which happened simultaneously into a single, cogitable, meaningful statement of "I failed?" There is no answer to these because one cannot fully express the scope of their personal conditioning in one pithy sentence. Blake knew that for her story to be understood, she needed to be trusted. There required an empathic bond between herself and her audience to substitute the unspoken hardships which had drained her so. To any other, her story might seem complaining, whining, and melodramatic when, in truth, she defended the actions of her captors. She required trust and understanding for her story to be told, and from a single glance at her teammates, she knew that both had been achieved.

Weiss waited on her, patient enough to excuse the hesitations of the Faunus-turned-ally as she continued to stare evenly at the evidence she was presented. Ruby remained at her teammate's side, thankfully warm and supportive while sharing this fortunate blanket and continuously communicating that Blake was not alone. And finally, Yang watched her partner with apologetic concern. Her lilac eyes shone sadly in the dim light and prayed desperately to whatever god would listen that that their previous happiness might yet be found again. All three were here for Blake and wanted to see her safe. She had once believed that this was impossible and egotistic to think, but now it was the inexorable truth. They deserved to know, thus they would.

"It began with the storm. We were preoccupied with the movements on the ground and didn't notice that the rain had picked up. I was too shocked by the speaker's sudden arrival and our failure at pacifying the crowd to notice that the clouds above had started to darken and crackle. But I couldn't get a word out—everyone was working independently of me and didn't need an order, but I still should have given one anyway and told them…something. I don't know what, but something needed to be said, something unifying or something calming or anything at all. But I couldn't. The storm caught us all off guard.

"Before we knew what had happened, I was brought to my knees. Something loud had gone off and nearly deafened everyone there who had enhanced hearing. I couldn't hear anything at all, not even the loud ringing I'd expected when the noise first sounded, but when I opened my eyes, I could see that everything—just…_everything_—had gone wrong."

"Thunder," Yang guessed.

Blake nodded. "Lightning must have struck while we were unaware, because when I was able to look back up to the factory, it was engulfed in flames. I don't know how or why the fire spread as quickly as it did, but between the moment I fell and the moment I came to, the building had become an inferno. The windows had been blown out, the floors inside had fallen in, and when I looked at the people of the town, all they could do was balk. Everyone around me was either writhing on the parking lot's pavement or scared because their friends had fallen. But then there was another noise which caught my attention. I don't know how I was able to hear it, but I did, and when I looked back to the factory, its roof was caving in.

"That was all it took for the people beyond the gates. Without the White Fang there to keep the barricades up…" There were so many. Thirty hardly carries a flame to thousands. And one amongst the masses was one who would never escape. Blake tried to take a sip of her tea but found her hand caught by Yang's. The blonde gave a quiet nod and squeezed this hand, giving her partner the strength she needed to continue. Blake closed her eyes, calming her mind and baring her story to the cold night. "We were overrun. All those people, every single one of them, rushed the factory and tried to scare us off. But those of us who still stood fired into the crowd, killing a few but only shifting their aggression to retaliation.

"They mobbed the people under my command. They attacked us. They killed the people I was responsible for. All twenty-nine members of my platoon and even the speaker I was supposed to protect were either killed or injured in the stampede, and it was all my fault." Her breathing had hastened in her panic as she clutched at Yang's hand for support. "I can still see their faces, the Faunus, the humans, and I could almost hear their cries as I ran away from them." Yang's hand squeezed back. "I didn't know where I was going or what I was doing, but I just ran. I saw the crowd and I knew that if I stayed behind, I'd only be killed. I'd been taught to fight and stand up for whatever I believed in, but I just ran like a coward. I left them all behind and ran into the mountains. I stumbled, I fell, but I just kept running until I couldn't run anymore.

"That's my greatest regret. It wasn't joining the White Fang, it wasn't leaving them; it was failing them. It was failing all those people who were my responsibility and it was failing all of their families by taking away their sons and daughters." Blake would not cry. She struggled with the quaver in her voice and the images of Lilian and Cole in her mind—she saw the vision of Yang sitting above her, sword lodged perilously in her arm, but Blake would not cry. "I failed them because I wasn't brave enough. I failed them because I'm a coward."

Instantly, she was silenced by a fervent squeeze to her hand. Blake instinctively sought her partner's smile, and upon seeing this show of unconditional forgiveness, she fell silent.

"You're not," Yang assured, her warmth traveling up her partner's arm and through the rest of her shaking form. "You're not a coward. You do all sorts of brave stuff, Blake, and there isn't anyone I feel safer around than you." Bloodshot gold met smiling lilac as a tacit promise was made. "It's all right to feel scared sometimes. That's just part of being alive. And if you have to carry that stuff around with you all the time, then that's just what you have to do. But don't think it makes you a coward. I'm the one who ran away from you, remember?"

Blake wanted to deny this—she wanted to claim Yang infallible and highlight her own wrongdoings—but before she could, a head perked up from beside her and sent a cheerful grin. "Yeah, Blake, you're not a coward! You're, like, the coolest person I know! You never have to study for tests and you always stand up to bullies like Cardin. I mean, how many times have you fought Torchwick by yourself? Like, ten?" Blake could see Yang's influence in the young girl's features, and in seeing this honesty, the Faunus was able to calm considerably. "You can do anything you want, Blake, and I've never seen you fail at something after you've set your mind to it. Besides, you're _way_ too cool to be a scaredy-cat!"

"She's right, you know?" Weiss offered. "You might have been a coward at one point in your life, but I know cowards and you're not one of them now. You've proven yourself competent and you've been an invaluable asset to our team, but dismissing everything you've done and all the confidence you've shown is simply nonsense. Learn from your mistakes but don't wallow in them. If you keep claiming yourself a coward rather than actually doing something meaningful, then you will only become a coward."

"You're not a coward, kitten. You're the strongest girl I know. You're a fighter, and that's what you'll always be. You know what's right and what's wrong, when to stand down and when to attack. You've got a great head on your shoulders, but lying to yourself like this is only going to make it tougher to make the right calls when they count." Yang squeezed her partner's hand, eliminating her remaining worries and causing a grateful smile that the blonde similarly held. "It's okay, Blake. You don't have to beat yourself up over all this. We'll always have your back, no matter what."

Yang was smiling again. Of course, it was still an uncharacteristically shy rendition of her regular assurance, but it was a smile nevertheless. It broke through the shadows of the Faunus' fears and supplied confidence where there was naught. Blake was all right—they were both all right—and she would continue to be all right for the foreseeable future. Perhaps she was not as cowardly as once feared and perhaps her reaction to the mob all those years ago had been justified, yet still there was trauma and nightmares surrounding it. But Yang would keep her safe; Blake knew this for a fact. The young Faunus smiled back, trying not to be tearful and failing in this regard, but the expressions she was met with—the strength of her team collective—made this failure all right.

"Yup!" Ruby chirped. "We're like a family, all of us. I mean, not like a real family or anything but like a friend family." This initially drew a bewildered look from her cold partner, but she ignored this for Yang's concurring nod. "We don't have to be related and stuff to take care of each other, and hey, if we're gonna be spending the next few years together, we might as well like it!" She moved to hug Blake, pulling herself closer to the Faunus beneath their blanket and grinning widely at Weiss. "We got your back, Blake! If you're in trouble, Team RWBY'll come to the rescue!"

It would take a few long moments for Weiss to come around, but when she eventually dropped the scrutinizing glare she sent the young leader, she sighed. "Fine. Family it is. Of course, you know that my loyalty will always be with Atlas and my actual family first, but you have been something of a sister to me—or at least as close as I'll ever come to having one. I'm not going to say I like every one of you during every second of the day, but, Blake, you've earned my respect and I intend on repaying the debts I owe."

Yang simply smiled. She and Blake had already discussed this matter, and despite this, the Faunus could not quite compose herself. She felt unjustly lucky to have found a home like this. To progress from a mere favored stray to a desired friend and surrogate family member was unbelievable—this was the equality she had been fighting for. Ruby was excessively generous with her compliments, Weiss had been the stolid voice of logic during this time of irrationality, and Yang…Yang had always been there. Even when the blonde had run, she carried with her the Faunus' emotions, causing them both to fall when one fell and rise when the other smiled. They were inseparable, and Blake knew this now. "Thank you," she whispered to anyone who would listen.

Rain continued to patter against the house with a steady thrum. The storm was gone for now and had left the four to their own devices. Caffeine aside, they would all grow weary of this impromptu hour and fall victim to the silence they together purveyed. Ruby would be the first to succumb and retire, consequently making Weiss the second as the young girl dragged her partner back to their bedroom, assuring that dishes could be done later. This left the older duo awake and at each other's eyes, reassured in the company they held. Blake had attacked Yang, and it was regrettable, but everything would be all right. They had a family to take care of them and a partnership to keep them happy.

* * *

Her room was unnervingly silent. She had known of the early hour and had been appropriately affected by Weiss' relaxing tea, but it was not until Blake saw the pale blue outline of her window's shades that she realized how early it was. Every breath rang loudly in her ears, every step crunched piercingly on the carpet, and every thought burdened her guilty conscience, keeping her from much-needed slumber. But she knew that sleep would never come—no, not tonight. Regardless of forgiveness, acceptance, or new family bonds, she had still attacked Yang out of unwitting fear. It was regrettable, wholeheartedly and entirely, but it had still happened. As such, her mind could not rest.

She sat beneath the covers of her old bed—the guest room, it had once been—and simply watched the blue window behind her. She could still see Yang's wince, she could feel how close the blonde had come to forgiveness before pulling away. Now that the rain had stopped, the room had become a well of introspective gravity, eking out the most self-destructive thoughts and surrendering Blake to the cold silence of her usual solitude. Ruby and Weiss had long since fallen asleep and Yang now moved about the house, extinguishing candles and laundering the linens Blake's sword had stained. To this end, Gambol Shroud likely remained where it had been dropped in Yang's room, far away from its owner's grasp and littering the blonde's floor as though it were nothing to be proud of. Unfortunately, this left the Faunus justly alone. She did not enjoy this silence of her own intention and hated the fact that she was alone, but she would not complain because she deserved this pain after causing so much.

However, she was all too eager to perk at the opening creak of her room's door. As soon as she saw the blonde's head poke through the gap created, a wave of relief washed over the Faunus and instantly these effacing thoughts were forgotten. Of course, a dreadful understanding came with this relief, but Blake would relax and take solace in Yang's reappearance.

"Blake?" she called. "You doing all right, kitten?"

"Yeah." It was not an entirely accurate response, but the Faunus was glad to have company. "What about you?"

"Good, good. I'm good. Um…" Yang stepped into the room, holding her arm as she pushed the door back, closing it with eyes focused apologetically on her partner. "I don't want to intrude or anything, but do you think I could crash with you tonight? I mean, this morning? We kinda messed up my sheets, so they're gonna have to go in the wash for a bit. I don't blame you for it or anything—it's really okay. It's just…" She sighed. "I missed you, Blake. I can't get to sleep without you."

The immediate answer was a resounding yes, but upon further consideration, Blake had to ask, "But what if I hurt you again? What if you get hurt because of me and you can't recover? I still don't know what happened, but if it happens again—"

"I'm not scared." The blonde stepped forward. "I know you didn't mean it and I know you won't do it again."

Her eyes burned a fervent violet which showed nothing but trust. She was not scared and she meant what she said, and as these eyes caught Blake's own, the Faunus knew that her partner was undeterred. "I feel safe around you Blake, like everything's gonna be okay. I don't care if you're jumpy or if you can't deal with thunder, because that's all right. Everybody has something they can't deal with. But if you think that means you're weird or something, you're not. We're just having a rough patch right now and everything seems like it's falling apart. But it's going to be all right, Blake.

"I'm not scared. If you want me to go, I'll leave you alone, but I'll always be here for you no matter what."

Blake was not as cynical as Weiss, so she did not believe that Yang was lying now after abandoning her team previously. However, she was not as credulous as Ruby, either, so she could not accept this promise without some amount of consideration. Yang had historically kept almost every promise she made, and whenever she proved unable to, it was due to either an intentional joke or her own inability. Fortunately, neither seemed to apply in this present case, being that Yang continued to frown and claimed herself brave. She had been a reliable friend, an indomitable ally, and, in the end, Blake loved her more than anything else in this world. The Faunus nodded, allowing Yang to approach.

She lifted a corner of her bedding, giving Yang entry without needing to use her arm, and quickly placed the covers back over her as the blonde scooted closer. Warmth spread across the room and throughout their shared blankets, effectively eliminating the morning's cold. The only sounds left were those of either rustling sheets as Yang found her place beside the Faunus or the concealed grunts she gave every time her arm contacted something. Eventually, however, she would settle to rest her head against Blake's chest and cradle her arm snugly between them, applying pressure which benefited her relief and as well closeness which the Faunus did enjoy. The embrace was completed by an arm wrapping around Yang's shoulder and Blake's head being placed atop her partner's own.

"I'm sorry," whispered the girl in black, pulling her partner as close as she could. "I'm sorry I hurt you. You were only trying to help me, and I just…I'm sorry." Her hand moved into the golden tangle of her partner's mane, losing itself in the selfless warmth and simply appreciating the owner's existence. "I'm sorry, Yang." She closed her eyes and pressed against the blonde head. "I don't want to hurt you again. I'm sorry."

"It's okay, kitten." Yang took a composing breath before nuzzling upwards, tucking herself beneath Blake's chin and conferring her unyielding faith in her partner. "It was just an accident, that's all. And accidents happen. Yeah, this kinda sucks, but I know you didn't mean it. You were scared and so was I and we just acted rashly. But that's okay. The wound's healing up and I'm kinda feeling better already; so, no harm, no foul."

She gave a short, halfhearted laugh. "Honestly, I probably deserved it after burning you back in Sierra. Though, you did kinda throw a pretty big knee and knock the wind out of me—not that I'm mad about that, by the way. Really, I should be asking if you could teach Ruby something like that. I know she'd really appreciate it." She sighed. "Sorry. Got off topic there, didn't I?"

Despite her proximity, she was nervous. Although Yang had expressed her need for the Faunus and now cuddled up next to her, she continued to exhibit an odd timidity which simply proved atypical. She wrapped her other arm around Blake's hip, curled her legs around her partner's own, and was unusually gentle in the way that she did so. Yang was bold, Yang was brave, but these were the characteristics of the blonde in her usual state, and the Yang of now was tentative and sorry. "I didn't mean to wake you up like that," she continued to apologize. "I probably should've done something else, but you just looked like you were having a rough time. I mean, I thought I was choking you or something when you said you couldn't breathe, and when you continued, I guess I sort of freaked out, too."

The hand around Blake's waist pulled them both closer in spite of the pain this seemed to cause. "I'm sorry, kitten. It's as much my fault as it is yours, so don't worry about it. I'm the one who should be apologizing."

At first, it seemed as if her words carried a singular meaning: a simple apology to relieve Blake of some amount of burden. However, it quickly became apparent that Yang was more scared than she was letting on. Her jocose attitude had become a hindrance and she was starting to place the blame solely on herself. Perhaps this self-destruction was simply a sign of shock after the earlier attack, but Yang had always been one to bounce back after a defeat. The scolding Weiss had given her must have taken root in much too damaging a way and allowed the blonde to think that the blame rested solely on herself. She was grasping at her partner and trying to bring her back despite the fact that Blake was not going anywhere.

To ease these anxious thoughts, the Faunus frowned and wrapped her other arm around Yang, holding her close. "No," she argued. "No, I think we're done with apologies for now. It doesn't matter who's to blame, it doesn't matter why it happened; you were hurt and now you're getting better. That's all that matters, Yang.

"We're still a team and we all have our problems, but solving them and making sure we stay together is part of what makes us a team. You've been there for me every time I've messed up, and, likewise, I'm going to be there for you every time you mess up. It's going to hurt and it always will, but I'm always going to be willing to help you. If you get injured, I'll be there to bandage your wounds. If you're having trouble with an exam, I'll do my best to sneak you an answer. If you want me to help train Ruby, I'll do whatever I can. And if you ever run, I'll always follow. It doesn't matter where you go or why you're going, because I'll be there at your side, ready to go when you are.

"I love you, Yang, and I won't leave if you don't. The White Fang doesn't mean anything, the burn in Sierra doesn't mean anything, and this morning won't mean anything after I've made it up to you. We still have a ways to go, but everything will be all right soon. I promise."

It was then that Yang released a slight but noticeable tension from herself, her body slackening as she let out a sigh and her legs curling up almost protectively around Blake's own. "I love you, too, kitten. We're still…you know, cool, right?"

For the first time in what felt like days, Blake released a quiet laugh. "Yeah," she said. "We're cool." The noise Yang made was halfway between a hum and a giggle—a wonderful noise that communicated both her thankful intent and as well the fact that she was still afraid. But Blake supposed that this latter sentiment was to be expected. Nothing she could say would be able to completely change another's mind about a situation, and she had learned this from her failures in the White Fang. Time would be the only force which could close these wounds—time and loving attention. As long as Yang knew she was being cared for and as long as she knew she had a reason to be brave, she would always be warm.

The morning blue of an overcast sky parted for a splendid bouquet of orange and white. Both girls found themselves squinting at dawn's first lights, but Yang would be the one to release a frustrated, if somewhat amused sigh. She moved to reposition herself on Blake's shoulder, smiling briefly at her partner's caught gaze before pecking her cheek and resigning to her nook. They simply watched the lights climb the wall in front of them, seeing the pattern of the blinds expand and contract with the rise of the sun.

"You know," Yang mused, breaking the buzzing silence and finding a smile on her girlfriend's features, "I never thought the first sunrise I'd get to watch with someone else would turn out this way. Don't get me wrong, the company's great, but the circumstances are a little more…PG than I thought they'd be."

Blake shook her head, rolling her eyes all the while. "Well, for what it's worth, I'm happy to be with you, too. Thank you for getting me through last night."

"Anytime."

Yang was amazing. She was selfless, kind, light-hearted when the situation required it, and, most importantly, she was Blake's. Perhaps Ruby and Weiss were not as much family to the Faunus as her partner was, but this could not be helped. This favoritism was only caused by the value Blake placed on the girl, and it did not help when Yang made herself exponentially likable in trying times like these. She was as close to a member of Blake's family as Lilian and Cole were yet somehow she seemed to be a more constant force in the young Faunus' life. She was amazing, Blake thought, and though she could be masterful with her lying facades and artful with her conversational deflections, she was still the greatest girl Blake had ever known. "So," the blonde then drawled, gaining a smirking Faunus' quizzical look, "we're not actually going to sleep, are we?"

"To be honest, I doubt it. I'm still a little shaken up by the things I did to you and all the reminiscing Weiss forced me to do." She sighed and gave a tired smile. "I also don't think going to sleep at the break of dawn a few weeks before school starts would be the best idea ever."

"Right. School." Yang grimaced. "So, we're staying up, then?" She received a nod. "All right. Sounds good to me. We should probably figure out what to do for breakfast or something 'cause I don't wanna spend all day thinking about sleep when we could be out doing stuff. That, and I need to start teaching you how to drive Bumblebee before we head back to Beacon. I wanted to do it later, but—what do you know—there isn't a later."

"I already know how to drive."

"I'm sure you do, kitten, but riding a motorcycle's a bit different than driving a car. That, and I didn't really make Bumblebee the easiest thing to drive, let alone turn on. I mean, how's somebody _not_ going to try and steal her if she's parked on the side of the road?" She hummed in her amusement. "Anyways, breakfast first. Then we can figure out what to do after that."

"Fair enough. Are we going now or—"

Blake was interrupted by a fervent shake of her partner's head. "No," the blonde insisted. "Snuggle first. Then breakfast. Just give me a few more minutes." This was perhaps the most reasonable request and action offered thus far tonight. As such, Blake would gladly accept.

She was sorry and would continue to offer her apologies for the rest of the week, giving reassurances wherever they were needed and gradually rebuilding their relationship to its former glory. They were both scared but not by each other. No, their fears had been the same ones they had always held: those of themselves. However, when they were together, these fears meant little. This was the reason why Blake saw her unconscious fit as wholly reprehensible. She had thought that it had severed their relationship and set Yang on a path of fear and loathing, but if this present moment were any indication, her assumption could not be any further from the truth. Yang continued to be her strong, warm self, and it was now apparent that her characteristics had notably affected her partner by way of osmosis. They were truly inseparable, or so Blake dearly believed. Parts of her had taken hold of Yang and parts of Yang had taken hold of her—they were one in the same at this point and no early morning accident would set them apart.

Gradually, the sun would rise above the trees of the surrounding forest and the day would arrive, sending off the leaden clouds and vaporizing whatever residue they left behind. It would be a clear, sunny week for the city of Vale and, likewise, this couple would find only progress—forgiveness, acceptance. They would simply snuggle for the moment, as Yang had aptly put it, and would eventually leave the house to go about their day. All the while, memories of the storm and visions of betrayal would be overshadowed by the happiness they together shared. Of course, they were not cured, but they were most certainly happy and would remain this way for the coming week. Yang was amazing, Blake thought. That she could accept this traumatic experience and forgive both herself and her partner in such a short time was simply amazing.

* * *

For the record, everything is not fixed by the end of this chapter—especially not to the lengths Blake expects. The entire last section should have come off as placating and calming in regard to her relationship, but at the same time, there were several pieces of narration that should have alerted you to the fact that something's up. Specifically, that last sentence should have raised a huge red flag.

I can't tell you what this red flag means lest I spoil the plot ahead, but it should be kept in mind that the characters of this story are habitual liars. Although they don't lie to each other most of the time, they do tend to lie to themselves and you can rest assured that Blake absolutely does lie to you (see: the last sentence of this chapter). However, this isn't to say that the entire story has some underlying plot based off of these lies and the truth behind them. No, it's simply the nature of faith in another person and Blake thinking that Yang can do no wrong. There have been lies given throughout this tale, usually found in simple cover-up stories, sentences trailing off, and assurances that nothing's wrong, but the closer we get to the end of Act Four, the more lies we will see of greater importance. And what do you know! This chapter happens to mark the end of Act Four.

This will certainly start Act Five off on something of a bittersweet note. I won't say much about the fifth act because by doing so, I'd by spoiling the ending. However, the pieces are in place for what is to come and the foreshadowing has been set and the people, places, things, and just about every other necessity have been introduced for the culminating closure which this story deserves. However, I should not lead you to believe that I have a final plot twist up my sleeve. That's not how my endings work. They're a bit more reflective than introductory, but I have a feeling you'll like what is to come.

But enough with the spoilers. For now, I want to touch on one particular thing that I enjoyed about this chapter. Way back in chapter seven, the original "The Storm" chapter, we saw Ruby, Weiss, and Yang having their time in the spotlight and coming together to be something of a team. However, that was all during a period of peace. This chapter saw the team coming together during a time of crisis in a way that didn't require additional firepower or fight-winning tactics. Yang was reduced to a frightened version of herself and Blake was realizing the scope of her supposed cowardice, and this left Ruby to take up her sister's caring mantle and for Weiss to become a fallible mediator. There was both success and failure and, at times, Yang and Weiss were at each other's throats, but by the end of the night, they were able to stumble to an understanding that left them in a better place than where they started.

I just enjoy the idea of these characters taking on their latent roles as their regular personalities are sidelined for a moment. It gives a glimpse into their futures and shows who they might eventually be. Of course, I don't intend to make Blake and Yang a collectively worried mess, but it does show who they really are behind the façades they have to wear.

Anyways, I had fun with this chapter. It was an attempt to reach a word count below 20,000 for the first time in what feels like forever, and while these author's notes and Fanfiction's line breaks pushed it over that threshold, I get to have the satisfaction that the chapter itself accomplished this goal. The next chapter won't have this limiting factor, but it will have a different goal set for it. I can't spoil what that will be, but I can assure that the chapter will be happier and that it will be fun.

Before then, I have one last chapter of _Edelweiss_ to write. It might take a bit of time simply because it's concluding the story, but I can't imagine that it will create an excessive delay. If you're curious about what the ending to _Valence_ will be like (in terms of quality and structure, not similarities in plots), then I should point you in the direction of _Edelweiss_. I'm very fortunate to be writing both of these stories as I am having tremendous fun with them, and at this particular moment, between the closing chapter of _Edelweiss_ and chapter eighteen of _Valence_, I find myself positively giddy with excitement.

With all that said, I should leave you be. Thank you for reading and all your support. There have been moments over these past few months where I've found myself doubtful and uneasy, but after rereading your reviews, I've been significantly calmed. You all are incredible with the support you've shown and I simply can't thank you enough. So, again, thank you.

Three chapters remain.

Stay safe and stay tuned.


	18. Chapter 18: Concord

Here we go. The first chapter of the fifth act. To avoid saying anything too spoiler-y, I'll let the story speak for itself, but what I can say is that I'm surprised this turned out as well as it did. Truth be told, these turn-of-the-act chapters tend to be a bit difficult from an organizational standpoint because of all the variables to remember and the shifts in tone which come with it, but I had fun with this one. Just seeing how everything is falling into place makes me more and more excited for the final two chapters.

That is, whenever they come out. I'm sorry for the wait on this one. It's not that I've been bogged down by work or disenchanted with _Valence_ by any means. Rather, these delays have been coming from background stuff on my stories—organizing, planning, and stuff—and as well re-edits of earlier chapters. I'll talk about them a little more in the end author's note, but, to summarize, the first three chapters have been re-edited by this point and I plan on editing more. That's why it took so long to write this. Unfortunately, chapter nineteen might take a month after this to come out; then again, it might not. I'm excited but busy. Fun times.

Anyways, I said I'd let the story speak for itself and all I did was prattle on. I'll get out of your way now and see you on the other side. I hope you enjoy chapter eighteen of _Valence_.

* * *

Chapter 18: Concord

"Oh, really?" Yang asked, a disbelieving smirk upon her lips and a genuine warmth in her eyes. "So, the Prime Minister went _all_ the way up to Atlas, took a _long_ boat ride to get to that big island of yours, talked to your dad about business stuff and stuff, and you think that all he wanted to do—like, his entire reason for going up there—was to tell you you're hot? And then you just brushed him off? The Prime Minister of Vale?"

"Well, I don't believe that was his primary concern, no, but he did spend _quite_ a bit of time telling me how I'd be a match for his son." A similar smirk appeared with the heiress' mirth. Of course, outward happiness in any form was something of an oddity for her character, but here she was now, happy. She positively bounced with every step as she strolled alongside her attentive girlfriend and seemed wholly unabashed of this fact. "But yes, I did brush him off. It was quite funny, too. He kept me half an hour talking to me of my uniform and buttons, so that at last I said: 'You must ask my tailor.' After that, I simply walked away."

She chuckled a low, prideful chuckle, closing her eyes at what must have been an especially affective memory. Weiss was laughing by her own volition, and it was an impossible spectacle.

However, the rest of Team RWBY walked in silence—that is, Yang seemed strained by her suppressed snickers, but Blake and Ruby found themselves in respective states of awkward duress. For the young Faunus' part, hers could perhaps be considered more pressing than her leader's, but it is not to say that Ruby's awkwardness was by any means pressing. Rather, she gave an attempt at a laugh, but this quickly petered out as she scratched the back of her neck. Unfortunately, with this petering out, Weiss' smile fell to an offended scowl.

"What? Don't you get it? I told him to ask my tailor!"

"Yeah, I get it, princess," Yang sneered. "It's funny 'cause you're rich."

To this, Weiss glared.

"Yeah, sorry, Weiss. I don't get it, either. I mean, I _guess_ it's kinda funny 'cause you told him off, but uh…" Ruby's nervous motions slowed as she frowned. "But who's Taylor? I thought you didn't have any friends and she's…yours? Or is Taylor a he?"

The heiress' brows rose in alarm. She seemed absolutely petrified now at the wording of her joke and how it had spurred jealousy on the young girl's part—this supposed emotion was equally as uncharacteristic as Weiss' mirth, but both had been real and thus required support. Fortunately, before either had the chance to mend the situation, Yang's laughter reached an honest crescendo, interrupting the younger partnership and catching their attention.

"Ruby," she gasped, just barely reining in her breath, "she said _a_ tailor, not a person named Taylor! That's the person's job!" Thankfully, her sister's dismay dissipated, soothing the worries within Weiss' mind and as well the stress within Blake's. But all too quickly the young girl's expression contorted to one of confusion. Yang noticed. "Weiss was just making a joke about how rich she was. The joke is that she has a personal tailor, which means she has a person who makes her…uhh…tails. Yup! Tails! It's funny—no, hilarious—because Weiss knows a guy who'll make her tails whenever she wants! I gotta admit, though, it _is_ kinda weird."

Just as quickly as her expression had dropped, Ruby's amusement rose to a smile. "Yeah, I guess that is kinda weird. But wait." She turned her gaze on her partner who, having been undermined by the blonde, looked appropriately annoyed. However, Ruby did not seem to notice. "Why do you need a tail?"

Weiss had moved to speak, but, once again, Yang beat her to it. "Oh, it's this whole thing. Only _real_ snobs buy them 'cause they cost a lot. Sometimes, when a dress just doesn't cut it, you have to find a way to go big at the really fancy events, and the best way to do that is with a tail! It's kinda like a nice watch or a really awesome necklace," with her free hand, she proudly displayed her amber pendant to the young girl. "If you need to look nice at a big event and you don't know what to wear, just put on a tail, and boom! Instant fashion."

"Huh."

"Isn't that right, Blake?"

At the call of her name, the Faunus blinked, ears twitching beyond their absent bow. "What? Oh." The question had taken a moment to register. It was unlikely Yang was making another cat joke, but she instead seemed to legitimately want her partner's input. It was natural enough, Blake supposed. With a sigh, she responded, "Yeah, um, she's right, Ruby. A tailor…makes tails. It's a very niche market and…" Why was she lying? Perhaps it was to appease Yang and the pain perceived behind her smile, but lying had only started this pain. "…and only someone like Weiss could afford to pay for one."

The blonde frowned at this, her teasing expression falling quickly away for a look of concern. Unfortunately, Blake's gaze was averted and thus she did not see the look, but this did not stop Yang from pulling her close. The arm wrapped around the Faunus' shoulder tightened warmly, drawing the girl in and holding her head against the blonde's chest. Blake shivered, loving this contact but knowing all too well how much they had gone through to earn it. In this position, she could see her partner's bandage, no longer red but unfortunately there, and the violet eyes which asked her what was wrong. She sighed.

Amid the crowds and movements of hundreds upon thousands of freely willed passersby, Blake was afraid, but not of them. They were harmless, no matter what they thought. She, on the other hand, could act upon her thoughts and historically had, undermining an entire race by abetting the White Fang and burdening a girl who already had too much pain in her life. Was she a monster? No, not any more than these shadows around her were. But was Yang hurt? Absolutely. And although the exuberant blonde now smiled reassuringly and with as much comfort as she had always provided, Blake could not look past her bandage.

The sky was a bright blue and, most importantly, it was visible. Clouds gathered both on the horizon and in the occasional grey cluster, but today would be a break from a week of turmoil. Every night since that of Blake's attack, rain had been the norm with occasional interruptions scattered between. Thankfully, none of these nights had been storms, merely rain showers, but the threat did linger if the weather channels were correct.

Yet even still Blake no longer felt confident about sleeping beside her partner. Yang was not to blame for this since she had been unfathomably supportive throughout their partnership's recovery, but it is not to say that Blake was the one to blame, either, since their strife came from their collective hesitation. Likewise, the young Faunus had put effort towards smiling again and ensuring that Yang was having a good time; however, smiles did not heal a scar and enjoyment could not mend a wound. She shivered at her partner's contact not because she loved it but because she was afraid of losing it.

She did not want to break up. Despite what had happened, Yang was still the most important person in her life. Blake loved her and this love was reciprocated, and considering what else there was in the world for the Faunus after all she had done, this long-ago crush was now an existential necessity. Separation was not an option. Instead, Blake fought to rid themselves of their respective stresses, and this was the cause of her current discontent. No matter how much she loved Yang and no matter how many times she confided the sentiment, she found herself woefully incapable of breaking from her darkness to focus on levity.

However, she gratefully closed her eyes as she felt lips feather a kiss against her ears. "It's okay," Yang assured, voice lower than a whisper. "Just relax, kitten. We're gonna be okay." As if on instinct, Blake moved somehow closer, finding her way beneath her girlfriend's chin and accepting the arms wrapped around her, hugging the blonde's form tighter as they walked.

"I guess it makes sense." Ruby seemed uncertain but not in any healthy way. She was accepting her sister's teases as truth with Blake's collusion. "I mean, it still seems kinda weird to me, but you probably know better than I do about fashion, Weiss."

The heiress in reference jumped at her chance to speak, wanting to outpace the mischievous blonde but ignoring Yang's nursing efforts. "Ruby, they're lying to you," she said outright, finding the only reaction to be Ruby's confusion. "A tailor doesn't make tails. That's nowhere near the truth, and Yang should feel ashamed for telling you otherwise."

Blake could feel her feel her partner's lips curl upwards. "Yeah," said Yang, "I _should_…"

"Well, then what _does_ a tailor do?"

Although it was still an unnatural sight, Weiss' smile to her partner seemed just as honest as Blake's own to Yang scant weeks ago. "I'm glad you asked. A tailor is a person who fits clothing. In my case, there is a man in Atlas who both makes alterations for the outfits I own and designs new ones to make my time at Beacon easier."

"But wait. How does that make sense? I thought Blake said a tailor makes tails. I mean, it has the word 'tail' in it, right? So that has to be it!"

Just as quickly as Weiss' smile came, it left with an annoyed sigh. As she explained to the younger girl the etymologies of the profession and even the old Mistralian root which formed the word, Blake could not focus on them. Their interchange was humorous and comparably lighter to the nonverbal discussion she held with Yang, but the past called and demanded her attention. Rather than listening to this shift in credulity on Ruby's part, Blake nuzzled against Yang's neck, reminding herself of the necklace her partner wore and the warmth which was for her alone. Like Weiss, she sighed, but unlike the heiress, she smiled weakly.

All things considered—all the pain of the storms, all the thoughts of teetering fidelity, and all the memories of Yang's diminishing confidence—today was beautiful. The sun was out, the crowds were innocuously bustling, Team RWBY had returned to downtown Vale, and Yang was happy. Perhaps this was the most beautiful fact of all, Blake thought.

To either side, shops and stores positively buzzed with excitement, rife with business on this cold front's respite and frenzied only by the back-to-school sales which so many storefronts advertised. Everything from the rain-leaden path to the storied stretches of white-stone architecture and even to the occasional street performer, whose jaunty tunes made the walk easier on the young Faunus' mind, seemed to shine beneath the sun's golden rays. But even then, Blake could not see this for she was too entranced by her partner's hug and the promise she returned.

She felt safe in Yang's arms, safer than she had been anywhere else. At Beacon, she knew there were students who would mercilessly berate her for her heritage; in Sierra, her supportive parents had even seemed tentative about who she had become; and at home, she was always wary of being too outgoing around Ruby and Weiss. But in Yang's arms, nothing could stop her. It was a confidence worth fighting for, and such is why she fought.

If there were something she could do—anything at all—to ease these growing tensions, Blake would have done it in a heartbeat. But despite the happiness they still felt, life seemed to be careening out of control. They had only argued the once, but now this bandage and that haunting look of terror in Yang's eyes could not leave Blake's mind.

But Yang taught her to let go of the past. Perhaps this young Faunus was not the quick-learning scholar she had once believed herself to be, but there was considerable progress made nevertheless. It is not to say that Blake intended to forget her past mistakes or even the causes Yang might have played a hand in; rather, she wished to atone for them by moving on and not letting the moment control them. That is, she wanted to, but it was easier said than done. Such a plan would require diligent happiness and façades to trump all others, and despite the pull of her memories and the pain of the storm, Blake knew she was strong. If she had been able to stand up to the protesting mob and part them without incident, then what was keeping her from enjoying herself and putting on a show to make Yang happy?

After all, Yang's discontent was the source of Blake's own, and if she were to quell the pain at its source, then it would be reasonable to believe their relationship might continue.

As such, Blake smiled against her partner's chest, nuzzling upwards and deciding a silent, affectionate approach would be taken. As if on cue, Yang kissed her ears again and grinned.

"So, Weiss," she began, making no attempt at subtlety in shifting the group's focus away from Blake. "I've got a personal question for you. You mind if I ask?"

The heiress turned to her, her smile falling easily away at the blonde's prying efforts. Of course, Blake did not see Yang's curiosity in this light, but she understood Weiss' disenchantment. "It all depends on the question. Though, I have a feeling you are going to ask regardless, so," she sighed, defeated before the battle even began, "why not?"

Yang smirked, not at all malevolently. "What's it like to be rich? I mean, it probably feels great to get whatever you want, but I kinda wanna know. What's it like to not have to worry about anything?"

"What makes you think I don't worry about anything?"

"Well, why would you? You have enough money to do whatever you want and everybody knows who you are, anyways. If you can't buy your way out of a situation, I bet somebody's gonna be there who wants to suck up to you. It's kinda like a superpower if you think about it."

The masses before them parted easily and without encouragement as the four moved along, walking beside one another in various states of outward calm. Truthfully, Blake was happy that all this could happen. Weiss and Yang, though characteristically combative towards one another, seemed pleasantly friendly. Ruby appeared similarly thrilled with this harmony, visibly displaying her excitement over her two most favorite people in the world now showing relative respect to one another. And even Blake, pressed against her partner's warmth and adoration, had begun to empathize with the blonde's anxiety of loss, reveling in the day's low heat and hoping this summer would never leave. The crowds were indeed large and her unbound ears indeed made her a blatant target, but amongst friends and in her partner's arms, Blake's smile grew from a sad act to an honest reaction.

However, her happiness was not the moment's focus nor was it Yang's or even Weiss'. Instead, Ruby had proven herself so enthused for today's tour that she spoke in her partner's stead. "Yang," she chided, "everybody has something to worry about! It doesn't matter if she's rich; she's still a person!"

"Oh, God," Yang recoiled, turning to Weiss. "Yeah, she's totally whipped. You must've got her good if you're able to feed her lies like that."

"I know," agreed the heiress. "It's sad, really. She agrees with everything I say. It goes to show what good parenting can do to a child—or, rather, what a lack of can do."

"And you're the expert on bad parenting?"

"Naturally."

"Hey!" Ruby interrupted, aghast at the smirks on the girls' expressions. "I heard that!"

"I would certainly hope so."

"Yeah, that was _kinda_ the point." The girls of yellow and white chuckled in their respective ways at the indignant look Ruby gave them. Even Blake, as concerned as she was with Yang's wellbeing, found herself laughing lightly at her team's banter, earning her the young girl's temporary scorn.

"I don't believe _everything_! Like, I know there aren't Grimm under my bed _and_ I know Santa doesn't exist, so…" She blew a rebuking raspberry, proud of herself from what Blake could see.

Unfortunately, her response only seemed to worry the teasing two, causing looks of concern to cross Yang and Weiss' expressions. "Uhh," stammered the blonde. "Should you be the one to tell her or…"

"I'm not sure. Do you think she's old enough to know?"

"Know what?" Ruby asked, her pride failing instantly.

"Ruby," began Yang sheepishly, looking to her seemingly desperate sister, "Santa _is_ real. They just tell kids he isn't to make it easier on them. Like, wouldn't you freak out if you knew a huge dude in combat boots is gonna break into your house every year?"

"Really, he's running rampant." Weiss shook her head grimly. "No matter how generous he may be, the fact that he sifts through a person's mail and breaks in to their home is reason enough for conviction—and the fact that he can do this millions of times every year has put him at the top of every kingdom's red list. And worst yet, he's untraceable. He leaves less room for error than I do; and, frankly, I'm jealous."

"What?" the young girl squeaked. Her mouth hung open in disbelief, eyes staring accusingly at the older two for this secret she had never known.

To their credit, both Weiss and Yang proved competent actors in their own rights, keeping their façades better than Blake ever could. Unfortunately for them, Ruby blinked and came to a sudden realization. "Wait," she said, once again indignant, "this is just like that tailor thing, isn't it?"

At this, Yang broke her façade and laughed, loudly enough to catch the attention of the surrounding shoppers and fully enough to shake the Faunus' head against her chest. "What did I say?" she gasped. "What did I say? You're _so_ whipped!" She howled in her mirth, unable to articulate anything else after this. And while the laughter only worsened her sister's hurt, Weiss was there to pacify the situation.

With practiced grace, the heiress quieted her partner, taking the young girl's hand in her own and turning a genuine smile on her, finding a frustrated yet hesitant look. "Ruby, we were only joking. I will admit, it was at your expense, but it was all in good fun. We didn't mean any of what we said, but if it came across as malicious, I'm sorry. Santa isn't real and you're not gullible, no matter what Yang would have you believe."

This was followed by a sight never before seen by the older couple, something which eliminated Ruby's remaining worries and caused Blake to stare in astonishment. As if it were the most natural thing in the world, Weiss leaned over to her partner, squeezing her hand as she went, and kissed the young girl's cheek. This was followed by a blush on Ruby's part which gave way to a reluctant smirk and, eventually, a prideful grin.

Yang, on the other hand, was quietly mortified. Although she did display tact in not speaking against her sister's happiness, Weiss' affections and placating ability had stopped her laughter abruptly. What was worse was that the end to her noise had not seemed to faze the younger couple in the least, being that they were far too preoccupied with each other to see the thoughts racing in the blonde's mind. But Blake knew this pain and hugged her partner tighter. Unfortunately, this only caused the girl's grip to slacken.

"As for your question," Weiss began again, all but beaming towards the distracted blonde, "having wealth does indeed have its rewards. I can't deny that not having to worry about expenses or luxuries removes a sizeable amount of stress from my life, but, at the same time, I must worry about the doors that open when others close. Just because I'm able to do something doesn't mean someone else can't undermine me; and the more ambitious I become with my wealth, the more willing others will be to paint me as a target."

"It's about her reputation!" Ruby explained, earning her a surprised smile from the heiress and a false look of enthusiasm from the blonde. "Like, think about it this way. Weiss is famous, right? Well, pretty popular. So, a lot of people are gonna talk about her. That means if she does something good or messes up, then people are going to talk about it, and that's a lot of pressure!"

Yang sighed, acquiescing against her natural character. "I guess."

All at once, the team's eyes turned to her, ending their discussion immediately.

Naturally, Ruby and Blake were the most alarmed by this resignation, but even Weiss, as speculative as she now appeared, seemed concerned. The smile Yang had held slowly dissipated as her sister called her name, making the situation even direr as she returned with nothing. The team then came to a stop, causing the once willing berth to close caustically around them and send hateful, vitriolic glares for the group who now blocked traffic. But the group did not care. Moreover, Blake did not care that the masses hated her while Yang continued to hate herself.

"Yang?" she called, finding strength in her need to reach out. Timidly, the girl looked to her, violet eyes shifting from their regular hue into something faded. Blake pulled away and took her hand, bearing into those sullen eyes as her teammates watched from behind. "What's wrong?" The blonde looked down and away. "Yang," she implored, "look at me. Look at me and tell me what's wrong."

The once confident girl closed her eyes, shaking her head and straining against her own thoughts. "It's…nothing. I'm sorry." But this was a lie. Blake reached out and pulled her girlfriend's gaze upwards.

Her eyes were not violet, her eyes were not red. Her eyes showed an unadmitted pain which had already been confided—it was an issue of self-worth and supposed selfishness—and yet as Blake watched the fading light tremble and whimper, she found balancing confidence.

With a brush of her thumb against her girlfriend's tearless cheek, she promised, "We're going to be okay." She gave a sad, hopefully warming smirk before glancing at their immediate surroundings and turning to her teammates. "Weiss," she commanded, directing their attention to the nearest shop, "take Ruby inside and buy us all some smoothies."

"But, Blake, I don't want a smoothie! What about—"

Weiss cut her off. "It's all right, Ruby. Just…come on." Without any more argument, the young girl was led by the hand into their impromptu distraction, allowing her partner to send a critical look the Faunus' way. Whether it was meant to give encouragement for Ruby's sake or to simply warn of the time Blake would have, the girl in black did not care. Instead, her focus rested only on Yang as Ruby and Weiss moved away.

The hand in her own squeezed desperately, almost painfully, as Blake searched for an answer. Was this the same result as that from the protest or was it Yang's unease after Sierra? Whatever it was, the girl was doubtlessly crumbling. But this was normal, Blake reasoned. Everyone has a weakness and there would normally be no shame for the strongest among them to buckle under the compounding pressure. Unfortunately, what Yang exhibited now and what little heat she gave off told of something far more ingrained than an argument or comparison. This was fear, perhaps that of loss or solitude, but no matter what the fear's cause, Yang was crumbling. And this on its own was a natural reaction, but Blake chose to spare her partner from the eyes which surrounded them.

With a comfortingly stable look, the young Faunus pulled Yang away from the crowd. There was no concealing alley to take her into, no overlooking tree to rest against until these pains subsided, and instead of a childhood hideaway there was only a sea of falsely concerned passersby who slowed and gawked at this show of self-destruction. Had Blake the energy to do so, she would have easily shouted at the onlookers as she had the protesters, but now all her attention was turned towards Yang and her unfortunate attempts at composure.

As soon as the blonde was given the chance to lean against the smoothie shop's corner wall, her breathing turned ragged and her expression contorted to that of a frustrated scowl. She was composing herself, or at least attempting to, and struggled against her partner's grip.

"Yang," Blake called, searching for her girlfriend's averted gaze. "Yang," she called again, placing her hands on the girl's arms so to hold her in place and soothe the arrested, disappointed movements she made. "Yang." At last, contact was established; however, the frightened look in these lilac eyes was haunting in its abnormality. "Talk to me, Yang. Tell me what's wrong."

"It's n—"

The Faunus shook her head. "No more secrets."

The blonde blinked. "I…" She sighed, taking what Blake hoped was a calming breath. "I don't know, Blake. I don't know. Just seeing that—whatever _that_ was back there—was…I don't know. I think I'm losing it."

"You're not losing it."

"Yes I am!" she snapped, causing her partner to stagger back in surprise. "I can't even keep my own sister happy anymore! Did you even see what happened back there? I was making her upset and then Weiss just swooped in and saved her day. Like, what was that? What am I supposed to do for her now? I promised mom I'd take care of Ruby, and I'm doing my _freaking_ best, but you saw what happened back there. I was bullying her, Blake—I was bullying my own sister! If that doesn't count as losing it, I don't know what does."

This was not about Weiss. No matter what Yang was saying about her, the heiress' only involvement was in helping Ruby. Had Yang cared about this, the argument would have been against Weiss' depravity rather than her own. It was apparent the blonde was scared of her own deficiency and how it was affecting those she cared about—the same matter she had stressed over on the night of the storm.

With this in mind, Blake squeezed her arms and frowned. "Yang," she hesitantly began, "you weren't bullying your sister. I really don't know where you're getting that from. That was just…banter. That was just natural. And I'm sorry if you see that as you driving Ruby away, but just because Weiss cheered her up—"

"_I_ was supposed to cheer her up."

Blake sighed. "Well, you can't do everything."

"Of course I can! When it comes to Ruby, I _have_ to. She's all I got, Blake. And you, too. If I can't keep you guys happy, then what good am I? I promised my mom I'd take care of her and I promised your mom I'd take care of you, and do you know how that turned out?" She held up her bandaged arm, bringing it between them and staring into Blake's eyes with self-loathing terror. "I couldn't keep this from happening—I couldn't wake you up from a nightmare, Blake! And if I can't wake you up from a nightmare, how am I supposed to keep you safe in the real world? If I'm bullying Ruby and making fun of her, how am I supposed to take care of her? Doesn't that kinda defeat the point of taking care?"

Unfortunately, Blake's eyes were now locked on the bandage, her thoughts of façades and atoning support having been cast aside for visions of possible separation. The scar hidden beneath this gauze, the little white line which stood out against a seemingly flawless pallor, was testament to Blake's inhumanity. That she had taken reactive arms against the only person in her life to show genuine enthusiasm for her was awful; more so, her insistence to push away the supportive blonde while rationalizing it as giving her space was simply irrational. She had cut Yang and Yang had been cut, and now this bandage hanging before them proved separate facets to this painful impasse. One side kept running while the other struggled to catch up, but this had always been a theme of Blake's life. Now, however, she was the chaser rather than the runner.

She closed her eyes and lowered her partner's arm, taking hold of the hand at its end while gripping the opposite shoulder still. Blake shook her head. "You're not a bad person, Yang. I know what you're trying to say and I know where you're trying to go with this—believe me, I've been there before—but you are not a bad person. That bullying you saw…perhaps you and Weiss went a bit overboard, but there was no lasting damage to those remarks. If you're really that concerned about it, apologize, and it'll be over. And this cut on your arm? That's me. That's my doing, not yours—don't blame yourself for my shortcomings.

"You want to do everything, Yang, and I'm inclined to agree with you, but you have to understand that everyone else has things they want to do, too. What you saw happening between Ruby and Weiss was an example of them making each other happy—like we do, Yang. We make each other happy like they do, but that doesn't mean Ruby can't make you happy at the same time. I've told you how she called your name on initiation, right? How she ran through the forest looking for you to be her partner?"

Weakly, Yang nodded.

"She cares about you just as much as she cares about Weiss. She may look to her when she's feeling weak now, but whenever she feels strong, she looks to you. Every time she needs to be a leader, every time she needs to make a difficult decision, she looks to you for approval and you've always been there to support her. That's something Weiss and I have never had growing up, and the fact that you two have kept each other happy for this long has honestly held this team together when we were at our weakest. Yang, she loves you. I love you. But seeing you in this much pain is hurting us both more than banter ever will."

"But your nightmare…"

"Blame that on the White Fang. Whatever goes on in my mind while I'm asleep happens because they never supported me like you support Ruby. They hated me, Yang, they used me, but you never have. That cut on your arm is entirely my fault because I couldn't separate fact from fiction, and I'm terrified of it. I'm upset at myself for it and I'm taking steps to do better, but the only way to do that is to accept what happened. I hurt you—I yelled at you, cut you, and ran away. And what did you do? You reached out and tried to help me each time, but I kept pushing you away. And I'm tired of that. I'm tired of running."

The blonde's gaze began to drift away, but Blake pulled it back with a squeeze to her hand. "Yang," she said, receiving a more somber look than those frightened ones before, "we're not bad people. We make mistakes and we have patches of bad luck, but those don't define who we are. Those mistakes are in the past, and it's unwise to dwell on them.

"You do make Ruby happy. You also make me happy. But Weiss makes her happy, too, and that doesn't take away from the good you do. That just means…That just means your sister has the chance for greater happiness with two sources instead of just one." Yang sighed. Although it was still downtrodden, it was progress. Blake let go of her frown. "And just like she deserves to be happy, so do you. That's what I'm for. I'm tired of running from my problems, Yang, and I don't want you to run from yours, either. I want you to be happy and I want you to continue making Ruby happy, too."

"Yang! Blake!"

Ruby was calling out, looking for them perhaps in the place they had once been. By this, Blake knew her time for encouragement was almost over. She caught her partner's gaze again and softly kissed her, taking the blonde's breath and worries completely away and moving close enough to feel her warmth return. "Don't worry," she soothed, finding a calmer Yang on the other side of the embrace. "She still loves you. And I do too. But if you want to make it up to her for saying what you did, then make today about her. Focus on the fun she could be having instead of what you might have done to take it away. Just…make her happy. And don't lash out at Weiss if she tries to help—after all, you're not the only one who cares for Ruby now."

"But what about you? Don't you need someone to keep you happy, too?"

Blake shook her head. "Don't worry about me. You're my goal for today just like Ruby's yours. I'll be happy as long as you are."

There was a moment where Yang looked to object. This, quite frankly, was a good thing since it showed her fighting spirit had returned to some marked degree. Her smile was tentative yet appreciative, her breathing was relaxed and strong, and the words on her lips fell away to a mere shake of her head. Confidently, she stepped forward, closing the distance between them and quickly pulling Blake into a strong, warm hug. "Thanks, kitten. I'll do my best." Just as confidently, the Faunus smiled and basked in her partner's heat.

At last, Yang had returned to her.

A relieved gasp sounded behind the Faunus. "Yang!" Two respective sets of footsteps slowed behind the hugging couple, quieting among the city's chatter. Blake turned to look at the approaching partnership, but as she moved to pull away and therefore give Ruby and Yang a chance to make amends, she found that the hug would not relent. But this was not a problem.

"Hey, Ruby," the blonde said, voice quiet but ever the more enthused. "What'd you get me in there?" Absently, she ran a thumb through her partner's hair.

The young girl did not answer. Arguably, her response was more fitting than Yang's own, considering the state she had last seen her sister in. But this is not to say she was entirely quiet. To some degree, she was, as anyone would be after seeing a shattered façade, but her frown urged her to speak. "A-are you…all right? You're not, like, in any trouble, are you? I mean, you're not—"

"Nah," Yang chuckled. "I'm just…eh, I don't know. To be honest, it _was_ something pretty bad, but it turned out to be nothing. Now I'm just…bleh."

"I'm worried about you." Blake blinked, as did the rest of Ruby's team. Characteristically, the young girl was candid. It was part of her leadership charm and made her come across as disarming in an odd way, but this statement seemed out of place. Just as Yang was vulnerable, Ruby seemed skeptical—perhaps this was an attempt against her label of gullible, but this was doubtful.

As she stood with two smoothies in hand, she watched her sister. "It's okay to cry, Yang. Everybody does it. Just because you don't think you should doesn't mean you don't have to; like, if things get rough, I'll cry. I mean, there's no shame in that, it's just venting, you know? And even dad cries sometimes. You can't just bottle everything up and hope it'll go away 'cause it won't. It never does, Yang, and you just keep hiding stuff whenever you're in pain."

She stepped forward, meeting her sister's uncertain frown with idealistic bravery. "It's okay for you to be sad, but just tell us if you are. If you don't…well, there's nothing we can do about it." The blonde's grip faltered with this lecture, giving Blake the opportunity to slip away. While she had enjoyed the hug while it lasted and she did want to keep Yang's spirits aloft, she had promised to let her make the day about Ruby. And just as quickly as Blake left her partner's hug, Ruby took her place. "We're family, Yang. No matter what, you and me need to take care of each other, and sometimes you have to let me take care of you, too, okay?"

Yang pulled her sister close, trying to take the initiative in pacifying the coming upset. "Ruby…"

However, the girl shook her head. "Stop it, Yang! Just let someone in for once—just let someone help you!" Again, the older partnership blinked in surprise. "You can't be strong all the time, and I know you're not, but sometimes…sometimes you just have to let someone else do something for you. I mean, you do a lot of stuff for all of us, but every time you need help, you always push us away. So, please, just let us help you if something's wrong."

There was a moment where Yang looked ready to object but ultimately chose not to.

What Ruby said was true, or, rather, her views aligned with Blake's own. For as strong as Yang was and how skilled she could be at maintaining an unflappable smile, her ability to accept others' help was comparable to that of Blake's. Indeed she had weaknesses and insecurities, but she had proved herself invulnerable in so far as she was incapable of being vulnerable. It was apparent that Yang did not know how to let her guard down even if she could devote her life to others' wellbeing. However, no matter how hard the challenge was, Blake was bound to her partner and to soothing the pain she kept locked away.

But it is not to say that Blake was without fault. In fact, she was surprised when Ruby's gaze turned to her, tears clouding her vision. "And you too, Blake," she quavered. "I know you gotta keep your secrets and stuff, but don't beat yourself up because you can't tell us about them. Sometimes, things just aren't your fault. And if they are, well, that's okay. Just…We all wanna help, Blake, but you always try to figure everything out and blame it on yourself."

She let go of her sister with one arm, extending it outwards and thereby making a gap between them. "We're like family, Blake, and that means you don't have to figure everything out on your own now. We want to help."

The young girl's arm remained outstretched in an encouraging cue, her frown wanting to goad her distant teammate into action and the perspiring drink in her hand demanding urgency. It seemed to be an invitation for a hug, but with these observations of both the Faunus and her partner, Blake was uncertain if this was truly wanted. However, all doubts fell quickly away to the look Yang gave her. She seemed amused, smiling welcomingly and rolling her eyes in a way that said "Humor her." Perhaps this was Yang's referenced selflessness or perhaps Ruby was being worrisome to an overdramatic degree, but whatever the case, Blake stepped forward and found herself taken in by the sisters.

"I don't like seeing you guys this way," the young girl said, pressing the partnership together in her troubled embrace. "You never argued before and you never fought. You were supposed to be, like, the perfect couple! And now I don't even know what's going on, but you're both acting like you're going to leave each other. I don't know…It's just…Please don't break up!" She pulled herself closer to her teammates, burying her head in their arms as she shuddered. "Please."

With a steady hand and a disarming chuckle, Yang eased her sister's tension. "Hey, it's all right. Me and Blake aren't going anywhere. Right, Blake?" The girl in question answered by resting her head atop her partner's shoulder, allowing Ruby to nestle between them and once again find her hope. "See? We're still cool—well, as cool as a public freak-out session can be, but still cool." She brushed her sister's hair, smiling down at the young girl as her distressed shivers subsided. "I'm not gonna leave you, Ruby, and I'm not gonna leave Blake, either. That's, like, _way_ out of the question. I'd never leave my two favorite girls in the whole wide world. Not over something like this! You guys are all I have left, so if I don't take care of you, then I'm just not doing my job right."

Neither Ruby nor Blake responded to this, simply taking it as the promise it was. Of course, Ruby's observations had been readily noted as possible causes of Blake's careening love life, but Yang's assurance was enough to make the situation seem normal again. Between the warmth her hug provided and the confidence with which she had spoken, Blake was certain their day had been salvaged. As such, she allowed herself to relax, releasing the breath she had unwittingly held, cuddling closer to her partner, and helping to make sure Ruby was all right.

To this lattermost end, however, an eventual grin pulled at Yang's lips, causing Blake to frown warily. "Hey, Weiss," she called, catching the girl sipping at one of the two smoothies she held. "You want in on this group hug action? The more the merrier!"

The heiress laughed derisively. "Ha. No."

"So, no hug then?"

"I don't do hugs."

A fortunate giggle shook the young girl's form. "She's lying," whispered Ruby, a smile breaking through her distress. "She gives _great_ hugs."

"Uh-huh. You hear that, princess? I guess _somebody_'s not as whipped as I thought she was. And good thing, too! Wouldn't want my baby sister to end up like you." The blonde faked a shudder, causing Ruby's laugh to grow louder.

"What? You don't want her to grow up successful and fearless?"

"No, I meant stuck-up and emotionless."

"Ah. That." Surprisingly, the heiress did not seem upset by the remark. Rather, she simply sipped at her drink and smirked at the sisters. "Well, at least I'm not lachrymose. What a shame that would be if I started crying in public over my oh-so-precious character flaws."

"Hey," Yang frowned, "I wasn't crying!"

"I think that was Ruby's point."

Yang's expression hardened to an indignant look, finding herself caught between two contradicting ideologies. "There's no way I can win against you two, is there?"

"Nope!" Ruby chirped, pulling away and grinning at the thankfully humored blonde. Seeing that her sister was mollified, the girl in red completely detached from her teammates, allowing Blake and Yang to stay in their natural one-armed embrace as she, herself, moved to stand beside Weiss. That is, she had intended to do so before remembering her initial goal in approaching. She then rushed back to her sister, handing her a smoothie, before returning to the heiress with a wide smile. "I've got Weiss on my side, so I can never lose!"

The rest of her team sighed in their own respective volumes, Weiss being the loudest by far. "I take it back," Yang said, shaking her head in mirth. "You totally are whipped, but I don't think Weiss is the one doing the whipping."

"Yang, she's not whipped," Blake interjected, not wanting the conversation to turn bitter in the same way it had. However, she was met with a raised brow to which she joked, "She's just misguided."

Surprisingly, Yang was the only one who got it. She laughed quietly and placed a quick kiss against the Faunus' temple while Ruby and Weiss stood confused. Admittedly, their silence was a bit awkward, but Blake did not mind so long as Yang was happy.

"Anyways," the heiress continued, turning her back to the other partnership, "we should move on. If it's our intent to see the city one last time, then it would be beneficial to actually see the city."

With bright, hopeful eyes, Ruby nodded and, just as happily, Yang drew the Faunus beside her in closer. More than anyone else, these sisters could withstand any blow. Between Ruby's unending optimism and Yang's affinity for consolation, there seemed to be a continual loop of support found between them. And although this plaguing matter afflicting the blonde was difficult to let go of, Ruby could inspire strength in her sister where else there was naught.

Quite frankly, Blake was envious of the closeness they shared but could find no reason to distress over it. After all, she was having trouble dealing with Yang's doubts, too, and any assistance would be appreciated. In this way, she was happy her team was once again whole and moving forward, leaving this ill-fated corner and continuing on their concluding journey.

The four returned to the cobbled path, merging with the masses and finding themselves surprisingly comfortable in this early evening din. Shamelessly, Blake snuggled closer to her partner's shoulder and was met with an equally shameless peck against her ears. She smiled. Regardless of the pain they had once suffered, Yang had returned to her former self in full, grinning down upon her girlfriend and holding her close.

In this air and atmosphere, today felt much like their first date. She and Yang were out on the town, heedless to their own cautions and jovial without care. Of course, there were underlying goals and obligations which kept the Faunus bound to her partner's upheld happiness, but this was by no means a detriment to her current mirth. They drank from their given drinks, minding not the spontaneity behind their existence and actually enjoying the strawberry taste they found. Between the cold at her lips and the warmth at her side, everything felt perfect to the Faunus in this world of willful ignorance.

School was only a week away now. It was unfortunate and admittedly frightening to the usually studious girl, but what concerned her most was how little time she had left to spend with Yang—that is, she was anxious about how few full days she had to devote solely to her girlfriend. If she could have it her way, she would spend every remaining moment curled up with her partner and one of the books she had been too preoccupied to read, simply listening to the television Yang watched and warming to the gentle kisses and caresses she had to offer. But they had lives to lead and responsibilities to take care of, so daylong cuddles were unfortunately out of the question. However, where they were and what they were doing now was reason enough to be happy. Yang was joking with Ruby, Weiss was smiling at their antics, and Blake was curled up against Yang, fearless without her bow and confident with this warmth.

The crowds would pass her by without incident, smiling at their respective realities and leaving hers alone. They were many and moved as one flowing current, yet Blake felt no fear. If they turned on her for whatever reason, then she felt confident that her team could defend her, but this had been the case since Yang's assistance at their summer's onset. Where the Faunus' confidence now flourished most noticeably was in her own agency. She could part the sea if she wanted to, talk down the most radical of viewpoints and dismiss an aggressive mob. The thought of a crowd still unnerved her to a mnemonic degree, but the crowd itself was harmless in reality. With her bow foregone and a beautiful girlfriend by her side, she felt confident in herself for perhaps the first time in her life.

The city opened up to the four, branching in various ways and directions which they willfully ignored. Street performers played for them as they passed, drummers and saxophonists alike receiving tips from Weiss by proxy of Ruby while Yang sang along to the guitarists, earning her the amusement of those around her despite her occasional missed lyric. And as they passed a collection of sidewalk paintings, Blake watched the heiress actually laugh at the young girl's nervous sidestepping. Although the city was not directly pandering to the reveling four, its layout and goings-on had begun to feel like home to the point where Blake did not much mind when Yang pulled away and moved to chat with Ruby. In fact, this was welcomed since the blonde was getting the chance to make her sister happy again.

In turn, the girl in black watched as the girl in white fell back, purposefully slowing her pace to match Blake's own. Weiss did not say anything at first, simply walking beside the once antagonized Faunus, bright eyes glimmering as she watched her girlfriend laugh from afar. Blake knew this look well and thus felt happy for the young heiress who stood in Yang's stead. However, these appraising thoughts quieted so to regard Weiss' peripheral glance and smirk.

"Smoothies?" she asked, almost chidingly.

Blake allowed herself a short, quiet laugh. "Yeah," she sighed. "I guess I could have chosen a better distraction. But can you blame me? Yang was…well, not Yang, and I needed a way to keep something regrettable from happening between her and Ruby."

"Oh, I'm not blaming you," Weiss assured. "Quite honestly, as far as improvisation goes, that distraction worked well. I'm simply laughing at the fact that _smoothies_ were your method of rectifying the situation."

"You know I didn't rectify anything. Everything that happened back there happened because of Ruby. I just calmed Yang down; there's still a ways to go."

"I'm sure. But you don't give yourself nearly enough credit. Ruby knows her sister better than either of us purely due to how long they've known each other, but the things I've seen Yang do for you…It'd be heartwarming if it wasn't so sickening." She looked over to the Faunus with a knowing smile before turning back to watch Yang, seeing her put the young leader in a playful headlock which quickly became a smothering hug. "Benignity aside," Weiss continued, "Ruby's advice for Yang wasn't just for Yang, and I hope you know that."

"You're saying I don't let others help me?"

"What first-year student at Beacon does?" Jaune came to mind, but, then again, he had appeared repulsively prideful in the early days of the first semester. "We all have our faults and unhealthy levels of narcissism, for why else would we choose a profession that romanticizes solo ventures? Last year wasn't so much about teamwork as it was tolerance, and while you succeeded in accepting others while I accepted myself, we still have work to do. Ruby has helped me with accepting others while Yang is helping you accept yourself. Or so the ideal is."

"You make it sound like I haven't found myself."

"Have you?"

The immediate answer seemed to be yes, but Weiss' insistence made Blake think otherwise. "I'm not sure," she eventually concluded.

"An admission of ignorance. My, Blake, you certainly are proving me wrong as of late." There seemed a second joke within the heiress' mind, perhaps something ever so mean-spirited or a bit too harsh, but all that came from this considering look was a shake of her head. "In all seriousness, though, you do bear a striking resemblance to Yang now. There's no denying it. Where you once wanted to see the whole world prosper, now you focus on her alone. You're still the same person, and I don't mean to offend you, but the hours you've spent with Yang and the number of times you've had to help her have changed you."

"I could say the same for you and Ruby. Between you two, I would've thought Ruby to be the kissing sort, not you."

Weiss rolled her eyes. "Ruby's not the _romantic_ sort. Not whatsoever."

"Which is why you take the initiative. You're still vying for a leadership position."

"Well, neither of us can change completely."

"But you are changing," surmised the Faunus. "As you said, this year was about tolerance, and if your newest acceptance of others' existence is any proof, then you've found a way to be tolerant." She smirked at the heiress. "I guess I'm not the only one who has a partner rubbing off on her."

"What? You want me to admit that Ruby changed my life? Saved me from the pain of loneliness and melted my icy heart?" She laughed, lowly and shortly. "That would be the same as you admitting a full recovery—that you're unafraid of your future now and of your past sneaking up on it. We'd just be lying.

"I've always been afflicted by solitude, but I grew accustomed to it. Ruby simply gave me a chance to break the monotony and open up emotionally for once in my life. Now, it's commendable, sure, and I'll forever be in her debt because of it, but just because I'm happy with her doesn't mean my baggage has miraculously disappeared." She lost her happy expression, giving the Faunus an even look as she said, "Fairytale endings do exist, Blake, but for you to live happily ever after, you will never be able to stop working for it."

The Faunus frowned. "You're concerned about Yang and me."

"Of course I am! You're my friend, Blake, no matter how droll our conversations can get, and I feel obligated to reveal what you can't see."

To some degree, the potential dictation of Blake's relationship was an immediately abhorrent concept, no matter how kind the intentions were. But as she looked into the steeled wells of efficiency in Weiss' eyes, she knew the heiress was truthfully concerned. Blake sighed, fearing the answer to her question. "And what can't I see?"

"That you and Yang are losing control of your relationship because neither of you will allow the other to help." The two watched each other, one justifiably certain while the other was far from it. Weiss sighed. "Whatever that was back there—and don't bother telling me; I don't particularly care—it was uncharacteristic. Before, you seemed unstoppable together, but now you can barely find the energy to begin."

"You…" Blake could not believe it. "You think we're tired of each other?"

Fortunately, these worries were proven illogical when the Faunus was met with an appalled look. "Of course not! Where did you get that idea? If anything, you're unable to tire of each other, not—No." Weiss shook her head, looking positively exasperated.

"What you need to understand is that your problem doesn't lie in your chemistry. That's perfect," said the heiress. "Your problem lies in your enthusiasm—your…speed at which you move. You two never seem to leave each other's side, which is impressive considering how tolerant you remain, but you seldom work towards anything in doing so. Of course, you compliment and hold onto each other for dear life, but what does that get you outside of momentary comfort? Perhaps it's just the pragmatist in me, but the way I see it, you and Yang are working well in the short run; however, your long-run goal is lacking."

"You mean—"

"No. I know what you're thinking, and no. I'm not talking about marriage." A blush burned across the Faunus' cheeks at this off-hand assumption. She had meant to say something else entirely, but the sheer directness with which Weiss referenced the option completely halted all other thoughts. "At the beginning of this summer, at the beginning of your relationship, your long-run limit was the end of our break. That was the time you were given to make change. And I suppose you did, considering how familiar you two have become. But you must push further. Just because you've grown close doesn't mean you are close.

"Take Ruby and me for example. We've grown closer—she's lost her fear of me and I've lost my fear of closeness—but that does not mean we can rest. I still have to maintain my composure and keep her on her toes because she still has a lot to learn—about everything, really—but those are our next goals. Just because we've reached our first goal doesn't mean we're done. I need to teach her as much as I can about strategy and etiquette and she has quite a lot to teach me about being human. Those are our next steps, our next long-term goals."

Then what was Blake's long-run goal with Yang? Perhaps it was marriage; though, that was far-off and necessitated more time spent together—after all, these current doubts did not bode well for such a lasting commitment. Perhaps it was sociability, the mimicry of Yang's social ability to the point where Blake could speak freely and openly without fear of reprimand. Or perhaps it was simple stability—a home. However, the latter two had been accomplished to some degree and the first was not even considerable. This left the long run open to unfortunate interpretation.

"You need a long-run goal, too," Weiss stated. "That much, I'm sure."

Tentatively, not wanting to show her incompetence, Blake asked, "Well, do you have any suggestions?"

"Not immediately. I'd like to hear yours, though. Perhaps then I can figure something out."

At first, Blake was reluctant. After all, it was Weiss Schnee of all people giving her relationship advice. But then again, the heiress was in a stable relationship in which she was both confident and surprisingly competent. Ruby was happy and whatever squabbles they had were mainly over simple mistakes, not over emotions hidden behind façades. By no means was she the paradigm of romantic understanding, but the heiress had shown herself to be a great organizer. Moreover, she had spoken of Blake's veritable allergy to assistance which Lilian had also noted, so there was at least some level of corroboration to back this claim.

"I'm…not sure what my long term goals are. To tell you the truth, everything's been pretty day-by-day in terms of what I need to accomplish. Today, I wanted to let Yang have a good time, take care of her sister and such, but I suppose that doesn't solve our problem."

"No, it doesn't."

The heiress hummed, audibly mulling over what to do. Admittedly, Blake was uncertain how much her meager information had helped, leading her to almost add "And I want her to get better," but this was probably assumed. As such, she kept quiet and allowed Weiss to consider the situation, watching the sisters up ahead and the way they so easily conversed. They knew everything about each other and it showed in their rapport, allowing Yang to laugh loudly and for Ruby giggle with her. However, her attention was soon pulled back to the girl in white.

"There's a rift between you and Yang. I don't know how, I don't know why, but there is. Something similar happened with Ruby and me, and when the rift went untreated, it began to fester." Blake raised an eyebrow. There certainly did not seem to be a divide since Yang was still happy, but Weiss must have noticed this doubt. "The rift isn't on the surface—though, in your case, that bandage might be part of it. The rift exists between the differences in your characters—and not the positive parts of them but your weaknesses.

"You don't let others help you and neither does Yang. That alone should be reason to separate you, yet you keep going at it because you both want to help. Unfortunately, Yang is compelled to bear the weights and responsibilities of everyone's actions for whatever masochistic reason and you're afraid to let her. Because of this, you two are at an impasse."

They were stuck in this rut because of their fears. Yang needed to know she was pulling her weight, going so far as to burden herself needlessly with guilt and pressure, while Blake was afraid of failing her. The two were charged negatively, fundamentally repelling each other from becoming one no matter how happy they were to try. This meant substantial change was necessary in one or both of their characters, and because Weiss was telling her to do so and Yang had already borne too much this summer, Blake knew the onus was on her to do better.

"I need to do something." Weiss nodded in agreement. "I need to overcome this rift for the both of us because we're turning a blind eye on it." Again, Weiss nodded. "I need Yang to let me help her."

The heiress shook her head. "You need to prove yourself to her."

"How? Aren't we both supposed to work towards this change?"

"How long have you been trying that?" As cynical as she was, Weiss had a point. "_You_ need to do something to show her that _you_ want to help. And, when she offers it, you need to accept her help, too. You've changed on the outside, Blake—on the relative surface—but now you need to adapt to her."

Up ahead, the sisters had come to a stop, stepping out of the flow of traffic to grin excitedly at their partners. It almost seemed as though they had something schemed, but Blake trusted the blonde and knew this smile was meant only for reunion. In turn, the girls of black and white smiled at them, maintaining their leisurely pace. However, before they reached the two and before this newly understood plan could be leaked, Blake had to ask, "Do you have any idea how I'd prove myself?"

Weiss shook her head. "You'll know. Our situations are different, Blake, but when you get the chance, you'll know. Just make sure not to let it slip by." She smiled at the Faunus, showing nothing but genial confidence as she turned this expression on Ruby. As they approached, the young girl held out a hand which Weiss shrugged at before accepting.

The younger couple walked ahead, hand in hand and pleased with their current station. Perhaps Weiss was cynical and perhaps Ruby was naïve, but at least they were unconditionally happy with each other. Blake was with Yang, too, but what the younger couple excelled in was a lack of worry. It was rare for the girl in red to be angered and it was even rarer to see Weiss cry, which, as she had said many times before, was an impossibility. They could discuss their problems openly and reach an understanding while Blake and Yang only touched on the matters before moving to physical comfort.

An arm wrapped around the Faunus' shoulder, eliciting a missed shiver and immediate warmth. "Hey, kitten." Just as quickly as the arm had touched her, Blake was pulled into her partner's side, torn between smiling at her return and frowning at her own consideration. In the end, she smiled and hugged back, postponing these thoughts of change for a later date. This received a kiss between her uppermost ears as the blonde asked, "So? What'd you guys talk about? Nothing mean, I hope. 'Cause Ruby and I totally weren't gossiping."

Blake shrugged. "Nothing much. Just…smoothies."

There was something wrong between them. Nothing volatile, of course, but something to be remedied. The way Yang spoke and the way she chose not to speak made sense to the Faunus now. Their conversation was fun and distracting, but they never once referenced the cause of the smoothies or the divide between them, proving that Yang was affected just as much as Blake was. She did not seem afraid, per se, and did not stumble in her phrasings, but beneath this smile and youthful glimmer of hope, she knew just as well as Blake did that something was wrong.

But they would bide their time. The moment hinged on their continued happiness and Blake did have a goal to achieve, after all. She nuzzled closer to the blonde, resting her head beside Yang's own and pecking her cheek whenever she could. This was always returned in kind with a giggle, drawing the amusement of a faraway Ruby and the joking disgust of Weiss. Despite this rift and despite the fundamental flaws which caused it, today was grand. It was warm, the company was incredible, and the stress of an approaching semester meant nothing when challenged by this favored city. The four would stroll ahead, conversing whenever they could and distracting themselves with whatever they found.

That was what today was about: distraction. They were distracting themselves from who they were, who they used to be, what was to come, and the whys of it all. Today was simply fun, and as they burned away the daylight hours, these four found much-needed reprieve.

* * *

The sun was setting now, sending off the cheery blue of the team's final tour and welcoming a somber orange and encroaching shadows. It was saddening to be sure, this uncontrollable rapidity, but the group of four was having fun as best they could and thus did not notice time slipping from their grasp until the trail of streetlights before them lit with the fires of night. Beyond the promenades and city squares, the storefronts and smiles, was darkness; but even this were ignored for the lights and sounds ahead. Everything surrounding was warm; from the jubilant crowd to the path they followed, from the summer on the breeze to the burning hues up above, and from the characteristic aura of Yang to the prescient love she explained through her fingers against Blake's own. Everything was indeed warm. And though the storm clouds did approach in wide, titanic columns, these loftier emotions were but secondary to momentary comforts.

The two of black and yellow, outgoing and introverted, walked with hands entwined by second-nature instinct as the younger girl in red, smiling at her own relaxed partner, found passage aboard her sister's shoulders, piggybacked down the warming street with insouciant ease. It was all second nature, Blake believed. They had all been divided not a year ago with the exception of these sunny sisters, and it was by their eager spirits that their divide had been closed. Of course, while there was a new apparent divide torn between the tallest two and although its reaches were yet unexplored, they held together for each other.

This was where Blake wanted to be, and she would fight to keep her station stable. For the first time in her life, she felt safe. The White Fang, from an ideological viewpoint, was firmly in her past while her long-abandoned parents were now in her conscious present. She had friends who cared for her outright and a home somewhere between a secluded plot of land and a towering institution for global defense; she had found respite after a life of running, chasing shifting ideas. But if this stability were to be usurped by incompetence—incompetence in the form of negligence—then she would fight her hardest against this change. She was a fighter—Yang's fighter—and would grip this hand tight and never let it travel far. So, she smiled at Yang and resolved to never stop, meeting a star of golden love in turn.

"Are you sure you're all right with it?" Ruby asked, returning the Faunus to the sisters' ongoing conversation. "I mean, it _was_ an accident, and I didn't even know it only had one save! And it's not my fault it autosaved."

Yang sighed. "Of course I'm not all right with it, Ruby! Do you know how long Blake and I spent on that game?"

"Uh…Like, an hour? You only got to chapter two."

At this, Blake cocked a brow. "Chapter two?" she asked in mild alarm. "What we played was only chapter _one_?"

"Yeah, it's supposed to be a hard game. Didn't you know that, Yang?"

"Wha—Yeah, I knew that. I just didn't…"

"Then it's fine! You guys can just start a new game and—"

"I'm not starting a new game."

"Ruby, I have to agree," said Blake, looking up at the girl who clung to her sister's shoulders. "I know we spent more than an hour on it, and even if it was only to get to chapter two, a lot of effort still went into it."

Weiss scoffed. "You're all getting this worked up over a video game? Honestly, I've seen some pitiful things in my life, but _this_, all this frustration, might just top the list."

"Nah," her partner objected, "you just don't get it."

"It's not just a game, Weiss, it's—"

"To be fair," Blake interjected, "it _is_ just a game."

"See? At least one of you is sensible."

"Not the point," Yang argued, still holding her playful smirk which all those around her carried, too. This was no serious conversation, and although it derived from Yang's initial shock that her game save had been accidentally deleted, her lone intent was to have fun, making Ruby laugh and Blake smile in the process.

"You see, I put my life into that game, my _soul_, and maybe Blake's, too. I mean, it was only for like an hour and a half, but that doesn't change the fact that I almost broke the controller over it and Blake had to help me out. That was a memory, Weiss, and you can't just delete a memory. Now that the save's gone, I can't get it back, and because we have a week left, how am I supposed to finish it?

"It wasn't just a save, Weiss," she wistfully intoned, "it was a _memory_."

The heiress looked at her, obviously biting her tongue at the potentially myriad things she wanted to say. Ruby, meanwhile, gave up. "Eh, I'm gonna have to side with Weiss now. It's just a game."

"Wow. Okay. Rude." Blake laughed at this, earning her the smiling recognition of her partner. "Anyways, you're totally beating that level for us, Rubes. Memory or not, I'm not spending another hour on that. It was…Eugh. That was the true face of torture."

"Okay! Why didn't you just say that earlier?"

"Because I was being mad at you. Duh!"

As had likely been the desired effect, Ruby giggled, causing the girl in yellow to do the same. Between the hearty warmth of her girlfriend's fingers and the uncharacteristic smile on Weiss' lips, Blake found her mirth, too, simply by absorbing the happiness around her and silently joining in as she had in their first semester. However, as she looked over, she found that Yang's gaze lingered on her with a question of, "Hey, Blake? After Ruby does that for us, you wanna maybe marathon the game? It's probably gonna take an all-nighter or two, but I think we can do it."

Without hesitation, Blake nodded. "Yeah. I'd love to." In truth, the option seemed daunting from the standpoints of motion sickness and forgotten narrative, but Yang was giving her the chance to prove her care. Perhaps by helping her when she got stuck in the game, Blake could show that assistance was both welcomed and benign.

As the older couple smiled at each other, searching for serenity on this slippery slope, Weiss' conversational growth proved to be unfortunately interruptive. "Well, congratulations. You've solved the great video game crisis of our time. But seeing as how you haven't even begun your summer assignments, what chance will you have to play your game?"

"My summer assignme—?"

"I'll do them."

The three turned to Blake, confused. Immediately, the Faunus felt uneasy for answering for her partner. She did still stand by her statement, believing that it would be another way to prove herself to Yang and thereby mend their rift, but this look she was receiving from the surrounding three seemed disapproving.

Weiss raised a brow to her. "You do realize they are _Yang_'s assignments? They are her responsibility, and she's taking some classes you aren't."

"If she wants to marathon the game, we'll find a way to do it," Blake insisted. "If it requires me to do her work, then I'll do what I can. I can read well and learn quickly, so it shouldn't be too much of a problem if—"

"Blake," Yang interrupted with a squeeze of her hand. "It's all right. I've got it. Really, it's not even that much! I can probably get it done in…I don't know, a day? You don't have to put yourself through all that for me."

"But I want to."

Again, this was returned with incredulous looks which nearly caused the Faunus to shrink away in shame. However, she wanted to show conviction in her assistance and saw Yang's declination as a burden worth fighting against. But as she stared down her teammates, her gaze turned to the heiress. The girl in white glared at her and shook her head warningly, immediately rescinding Blake's enthusiasm and reprimanding her plan. Perhaps it had been a bit much.

As Blake's strength faded, Yang's fingers left hers, sending an unwanted chill up her spine before the same hand found her opposite shoulder. She frowned at her own inability as she was pulled into Yang's form. Fingers danced up and down her bicep, soothing her wordlessly as another, smaller hand tentatively scratched her unbound ears. "Blake, it's okay. If you really want to, you can look over my stuff and check my answers, but this is something I've gotta do. We can have fun, too, but sometimes we just have to bite the bullet and actually do something. Is that all right?"

There was no answer. It was not all right by any means. Even though Blake truthfully did not want to do the work she had promised, the lost opportunity to mend their divide was crushing with this week's fleeting speed. If they returned to Beacon with this baggage, then it was likely they would never find room for recovery among their doubtlessly packed schedules. With the newly planned marathon and the revelation of Yang's summer assignments, this left little in the way for forward progress, and as this summer's doors began to close, Blake began to feel suffocated by her own mistakes.

Fortunately, a kiss to her forehead removed her from these thoughts, and as Yang pulled her closer, Blake resigned to bleary comfort. "Don't worry, kitten. We'll figure this out."

But it was a lie. Their achievements could be ascribed to "we," their mistakes, too, but their assisting efforts were seldom plural. It was always one helping the other, and this present situation required both to help themselves by way of each other. But this was their collective problem. They were so used to operating independently that dependency simply did not fit their characters no matter how necessary it was for the fit to occur. Blake sought her established nook beneath her girlfriend's chin and shuddered, frustrated with this week and forcing herself to find a way to fix this mess.

With this setting day, the crowd around the four had changed, paying no mind to the worried Faunus when greater joys surrounded them. They were all happy and openly so, travelling from candlelit cafés to what they expected would be a moonlit stroll. And though the team had since stopped for dinner and left, the smiles upon these many shadows seemed to taunt the Faunus, showing a sense of excitement she feared she might never feel again. They laughed with each other, talked amongst each other as though their recent acquaintanceships did not pull at their nerves and sang along with the musicians who Yang no longer acknowledged.

Blake was a coward. She knew the most practical way to deal with her partnership's divide was the most direct one, but talking to Yang about it expressly seemed faulty, as though the act of confession would somehow widen their rift and tear them apart. She wanted to do something but feared the unintended, shying from an action born of consequence. But by inaction, she was running from her problem—a proven definition of cowardice.

She was culpable to the sins of her people, only defending herself from the White Fang when they attacked first and having never denounced their actions when her word mattered most. She had burned the bridge between them and no longer fostered sympathy for the organization, but still she had participated and left thirty lives in her direct wake—and even more, she supposed, from unanticipated fallout. Such was her current state. By not staying aware of both the present and her future, she had missed a series of small, compounding mistakes she could no longer bring herself to look back on. By being willingly ignorant to her own social incompetence, she had driven Yang into believing she was not good enough. Moreover, she had allowed these sentiments to fester by not confronting them.

And although Yang did smile and hold her sister aloft, she seemed weak. The bandage on her arm, the slowness of her stride, and the smile which was so clearly a façade told of regret she could no longer run from. Her bandage was still white, having been changed a couple days ago, but was occasionally rubbed as though she were ashamed of it. Her stride had slowed not because of the younger girl on her back but because of the events she saw before her. And with her slowed pace, the rest of her team slowed, too. This was her summer more than it was anyone else's. She had made the plans, set the stage, and accepted Blake's invitation after her own. And now her summer was ruined because of a coward who was not nearly human enough for such a relationship.

Blake frowned, watching the cobbled path as it passed. Of course, she could see her partner's tank top below, fluttering in the oceanic breeze, and her powerful gait which harkened to the confidence that had once drawn the Faunus in. Indeed there was the possibility for salvation, as slim as it might have been, but the only way to achieve it was through hard work and diligence. But in order to do that, Blake needed to be confident, which she was not. She sighed.

"Hey, Blake?" Ruby called from her sister's shoulder, shaking the girl in question from her reverie. "Are you all right? You haven't been saying much lately, and I'm…" Worried. She was worried but let the sentence trail off.

With this, the Faunus pulled herself from her girlfriend's shoulder, receiving separate looks from the three and realizing an entire conversation had gone on without her. She blinked and saw the sky darken, forgoing its luminous hue for a misty indigo as a couple hidden stars came to light.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said, looking to her similarly frowning leader. "I'm just thinking."

"That wasn't thinking," Weiss observed, arms crossed in an unintentional show of defiance. "That was brooding."

"What? Brooding?" The young girl seemed shaken from her previous curiosity. "Blake, is something wrong? Do you need to talk to anybody? Because if you do, we—"

The Faunus shook her head, earning a distrustful scowl from the girl in white. "Thank you, Ruby, but I'll be fine. I just need some time to think."

She knew this would never appease the younger partnership, but they had not been her intent. Yang looked down at her, squeezing her shoulder comfortingly and catching her amber gaze whenever it dared travel up. The goal had been to deceive this girl—to lie to her again—and avoid worrying her in the process, but when Blake met her partner's upturned lips and downtrodden eyes, she knew this feat was impossible. If Ruby and Weiss had seen her struggle, then Yang probably knew what was happening far better than Blake did, herself. "I'm close to figuring it out. I…I'm sorry if I was bothering you."

"You don't bother me, Blake," Yang assured. "You never do. Whatever's happening, take your time, but we'll be right here if you need help." There it was. "You should be having fun, too."

Blake saw the divide. Yang wanted to help her and had expressed a will to do so, but she was tentative to limit her partner's independence. It was in her nature to give care, but Blake had presented herself in a way that seemed to abhor it, thus causing the blonde's uncharacteristic deference. Simultaneously, Yang presented herself in a way which never seemed to require assistance, leading to Blake's shortsighted strategies.

The Faunus nodded meekly, not wanting to further burden the situation. Unfortunately, this caused Yang to sigh and pull the girl close once again. With a hug and a kiss, everything was supposed to be better, but still Blake's thoughts lingered and manifested in her expression. This seemed to irk the heiress.

"Yang?" asked Weiss, voice little more than an annoyed growl. "Would you mind if Blake and I had a moment to talk?"

"Uh, I'm not sure that's the best—"

"Give us a moment." Her word was a command, and with Yang's weakened state, there was no chance for refusal.

With a surprising lack of argument from Ruby, Yang held the Faunus to her chest for one second more before releasing her with a frown. The two watched each other for a fleeting moment, begging each other to be all right, before Yang let go altogether and walked ahead with Ruby on her back. It was a painful sight, this walking away; it felt like an omen of sorts to what could be and what she wanted to prevent. However, seeing Yang quickly change the topic of conversation with her sister and seeing the young girl smile immediately after reminded Blake why Yang was so set on giving care.

Weiss approached, deigning a scowl as she confronted this seeming personal offense. What stake she had in the matter, Blake did not know—perhaps Ruby's happiness had been jeopardized or her own patience tried—but it would soon become apparent as the heiress moved closer. "What are you doing? Didn't you hear anything I said earlier?"

"Weiss, it's nothing. I'm just trying to—"

"You're trying to help?"

The Faunus nodded.

The heiress seemed exasperated. "I know you're stubborn and I know we have a _spectacular_ track record of listening to each other, but just for once—just this one time—try to actually listen to what I'm saying. You aren't making any progress by forcing your assistance. Whatever plans or schemes you've been making up go against what you should be doing—in fact, they're only tearing you and Yang apart."

"But Yang's hurt." She sounded betrayed, weak and shivering at her own cowardice. "And she doesn't see the rift. I-I think I do, but I don't know what I can do about it. It's just…every time I try to do something, it fails or Yang doesn't see it. I'm trying to help her, but I can't figure out how."

The heiress sighed. With this, she had lost her frustrated expression yet retained her exasperation. "Do you really want to know how to fix this mess?" Quickly, Blake nodded. "Are you willing to listen to _everything_ that I have to say rather than cherry-pick the parts which could make your life miserable?" Again, the Faunus nodded.

"You have to get over yourself. That's step number one. You have to stop helping Yang for your sake and start helping her for hers. This isn't about you dating anymore; it's about her being broken and you hardly faring any better. If neither of you genuinely want to mend the rift, then neither of you will because the opportunities to do so are almost impossible. But if you get over yourself and stop being afraid, then _perhaps_ you'll have the chance to reach out to her."

With brows furrowed at the task set before her, Blake admitted, "It's easier said than done. How am I supposed to get over my fear when it's been the foundation of my life for as long as I can remember?"

"Frankly?" The Faunus looked to the heiress, hesitant to what she might say. "I don't care. I'm not your therapist and I'm not here to talk about your feelings. I'm telling you that if neither of you want to be happy, then all of your attempts will mean nothing."

Once again, Blake gaze turned downwards.

"Whatever insecurities you may have, whatever fears or anxieties you might suffer from, you need to get over them. I don't care if it's hard and I certainly don't care if your fear of thunder overrides everything else. Your fears drove Yang away, and now she's rationalizing them as her inability. And the longer you let her do that, the less likely it will be that you can make the situation better."

The girl in white turned to Blake with a more considerate frown, telling of honest care. "You two started off as a fairy tale that Ruby admired—to be honest, you and Yang are the only reason she and I are together. You clicked with no questions asked and no reason why, and when you learned she was ever so insecure and she learned you had a cliché fear of bad weather, you came together. It gave Ruby hope, and I've never seen you happier than you were in June.

"But then you let your fears get the better of you. That thunderstorm which brought you together tore you apart all because you couldn't admit a need for help. You two just wanted comforts and promises and a cushiony break away from all your fears. But you never acted on your promises, did anything with your luxuries. The closest thing you've done to being proactive this summer was travelling to wherever it was you went; and even then, Yang came back to yell at me.

"I think you two are frustrated because you expected a fairytale ending but let it slip from your grasp. You're frustrated that you have all these thoughts on your mind, all these fears, and no way to express them—both of you expected the other to be salvation of some sort, a free pass to a normal life. And you got close to it last week when you told us about the factory, but because you left out information, you gave Yang cause to worry—she likely thinks you're hiding something from her. Likewise, you think of yourself as a coward because she's not being honest with you. All this is is a snake eating its own tail, and as long as both of you are unwilling to talk, then neither of you will be happy."

She directed Blake's gaze forward with an oddly uncharacteristic bump of her elbow. "Look at them," she said, watching the sisters laugh. "They're open with each other. They talk about whatever. And that's healthy, from what I've come to gather. Keeping your thoughts to yourself and letting them sour only leads down a path of depression. You can see Yang as a reprehensible liar, a flighty companion, or a misguided soul, but just know that your thoughts about her will only fester as long as they're kept to yourself."

Blue eyes met gold as the heiress frowned. "I learned something from Ruby this summer. We had a rift of our own to mend, and though I'd like to give myself credit for orchestrating its closure, our restoration—our growth—was due in full to her proactive teaching. She taught me to speak. She taught me to be open with her about even my most regretted fears and not let them have power over me. If there's anyone on this planet I can trust with that information, it's her because I know she cares about me. And Yang cares for you, too. I'm not advising you to tell her each and every one of your insecurities, but consider letting her in. Even more than that, be there for her and listen whenever she needs to speak. It's not about you or the divide between you; it's about her."

Then, in the most sincere, straightforward, plea Weiss Schnee could ever give, she asked, "Now, please, get over yourself."

Immediately, this caused Blake to smirk. By no means was the task set before her an easy one and she was not the least bit enthusiastic about admitting her faults, but it seemed so simple now. She did not see any defined path set for her nor did she see a clear endgame to her eventual efforts, but the means of their salvation seemed surprisingly manageable. Kindness begets kindness, and if Blake were to be kind to Yang and open with her like she had with no one else, then it could be reasoned that Yang would gradually reciprocate.

It was a difficult plan and would require hard work to complete, but Blake knew the strategy was sound. In fact, it sounded almost like her original reason for joining the White Fang. She had been ready to thank her teammate but unfortunately found that the heiress had walked away without another word.

Weiss was not the sort to help another, much less admit to doing so, and though her assistance was welcomed, her seclusion would be respected as well. The girl in white had meant to catch up with her undoubtedly anxious teammates, a typical frown on her countenance but a just as characteristic summer glint in her eye. Amid the passersby and street vendors of all sorts, the sisters waited for her as she caught up. Even from her distance, Blake could see the smile shared between Weiss and Ruby and knew their connection was indeed strong—stronger than she had initially suspected. Whether the heiress was truthful in the lengths she went to confide in Ruby was yet uncertain, but her happiness was genuine and so was Ruby's own.

But as the younger couple reunited in an easy show of familiarity, Yang glanced back at her own slowing partner. She smiled for a brief second before frowning again, tentatively gauging which emotion was appropriate.

In the end, the two stopped, each at their respective sides of the walk and watched each other quietly, carefully, urgently. This caused the shorter two to turn towards Blake and frown as well, but their existence mattered little in comparison to Yang's. Blake could see fear in her partner's eyes and wanted to get rid of it—she saw pain and wanted to soothe it. Between the way she held on to Ruby's legs and the uneasiness of stance she took pointed towards something terribly hidden, and this would not do. The Faunus was far from confident, but she understood what to do now, if not how to go about it.

She met Yang's frown with a smile—nothing big or sad, simply the same amused smirk she used to give back at the academy. And at the cue of a relieved, if not forced laugh from the golden girl, Blake moved forward, covering the yards between them quickly and returning to Yang's side. There were no kisses shared between them or hugs or even fingers interweaved; they simply smiled at each other, one asking if the other was all right and the other confirming it with her presence. Even still there was an instinct in the blonde to reach out and take her partner's hand, but this instinct proved nothing more than a tick as she reined her arm in.

"Hey, Blake?" Ruby called, peeking around the wild mane before her. "You all right? I mean, is everything…you know…gonna be okay?"

With a quiet chuckle, Blake shrugged. "I can't say I'm totally fine, but I've definitely felt worse." Again, she flashed a smirk Yang's way and was delighted to see a glimmer of hope behind her eyes. Admission had worked.

"Kitten?" Her voice cracked.

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry about freaking out back there."

"I know," Blake said. Although the Faunus did not know why Yang was being apologetic or for what reason she had to be sorry, she would nevertheless accept for Yang's sake. "You don't need to apologize to me, but if you want to, I'll accept it."

Yang smiled. To her, this must have seemed like a rest to their unstated, unadmitted hostilities. By accepting the apology, Blake had given her room to recover and regain her confidence—by letting her win a nonexistent battle, it could be assumed that the blonde was slowly rebuilding her motivated fire and kindling it with the smallest of victories. As small as it was relative to the rest of Blake's plan, this smile was a victory because it was neither sad nor hesitant; it was simply grateful.

However, with Blake's victory came unwitting defeat, for as she returned Yang's emotion with zeal, the shorter two could only watch. As these seconds of silent reassurances turned to minutes and as these minutes saw the fading sky darken, the youngest among them and the heiress who had since been characterized by adherence to structured plans found themselves in an awkward state. Blake and Yang were happy to see each other happy—such was who they were—but Ruby and Weiss had better things to do than watch these fearful two cling to their dissonant safety.

Weiss, being the more patient, did not act first but instead let her partner wriggle out from Yang's clutches and ultimately fail in this endeavor. Hesitant though she could be, the unease Ruby felt at this stagnation led her to interrupt. "Yang? Can I get down now? I wanna walk with Weiss for a bit."

For a frightening half-second, the blonde's enthusiasm fell away. Perhaps this was due to the divide Blake now understood or perhaps it was simply a contemplative tell, but her smile eventually returned just as quickly as it left. She turned to look over her shoulder, conceding, "Yeah, sure," before crouching at her knees and letting her sister down. As Ruby stepped away and moved to Weiss' side, the blonde sprang right back up, hoping to draw some kind of humor from the silence and meeting Blake's care with the same nescient hope.

"Anyways," Weiss interjected, easing her team away from its inaction, "we still have a walk ahead of us, and if we want to reach your home by a reasonable time—"

"Which we don't." Yang smirked, giving Blake cause to sigh in relief.

Weiss did just the same, if in a more agitated manner. "Okay, well, we need to move at some point, and I'd much rather it be sooner than later." She shook her head. "To be honest, I want to head back soon, but at the same time I don't. If we could find one or two final things to do, then we could perhaps call it a night and mark this summer as a success. Personally, I'd prefer if we could end today on our own terms rather than letting the rains decide for us, but if you'd rather stay out late—"

"Nah. I'm fine," admitted the blonde. "I just didn't wanna end it on dinner. I don't know; seemed kinda anticlimactic. You have any ideas?"

"None whatsoever. Dinner was as far as I planned."

"Um, I have an idea if anybody wants to hear it."

The team turned to the youngest among them, attentive as always to her call. However meek she could be in social situations, Ruby was their leader, friend, sister, and, in Weiss' case, girlfriend, and such was why the three were prepared for whatever she had in store. But whereas her teammates were prepared for her leadership outside of a combat scenario, Ruby was yet surprised, eyes widening in fear and stance giving way to a step back as she accepted her social influence. Fortunately, this reaction was eased away by a slight smile from the heiress.

"I _think_ I know where we are," she began, "and if I'm right, then we're almost at that fountain and where me and Weiss…well, where we argued." Just as how Yang's smile had ducked to Ruby's leave, Weiss' expression faltered momentarily before continuing with her silent reassurances. "And if that's where I think it is, then maybe we could all go on the merry-go-round…or something."

At first, it seemed as though the young girl expected her team to know what she was talking about, and though Blake would readily admit that she did not, it soon became apparent that Ruby was speaking to her sister. Yang perked up at this, startled by the proposition and skeptical of its execution. "You don't mean…?" Ruby nodded. "Ruby, aren't we a bit old for that now? And without mom?"

"I think we can handle it. And besides, Weiss and Blake haven't been there before. So, I mean, it'd probably be a good idea to show it to them, right?"

Had she been in her regular, flippant state of mind, there would be no doubt that Yang would support her sister's endeavor, but a guilty pang ran through the young Faunus' heart when the girl in yellow asked, "Are you sure? We were kids last time we went there."

"But Yang…" She seemed disappointed, Weiss' certainty no longer having a guiding effect. "It's the _merry-go-round_! We always went there after…"

Weiss interrupted the sisters, stepping in for her partner to glare at the taller girl. "We're going," she asserted simply.

There was a moment where Yang looked primed to object, finding some suitable reason to rebel against this apparent memory, but all that came of this was a sigh. "Fine," she groused. "Just…it's not going to be the same without mom, Ruby."

"Enough," Weiss growled. Her quiet, defensive fury met Yang's own. Rather, it is to say that the heiress' fury met Yang's unintended apathy. Blake did not know what was more disconcerting: Weiss' individuality winning out over Yang's protectionism or Yang's self-fulfilling prophecy of becoming her father at the first signs of loss. "We're going. You aren't giving any ideas, yourself, and can hardly stand up on your own. So, either come up with another plan or keep your mouth shut and follow the leader." Yang's gaze averted.

It was then that the heiress turned, glancing at Blake for a fraction of a second and sending an inscrutable message before taking Ruby's hand with a contradicting smile. "Are you ready?" she asked, voice soft and unfazed. Still shaken, Ruby could only look at the state of her hand. Eventually, however, she nodded slowly. "Then let's go. Don't worry about them; they'll follow soon enough. In the meantime, show me this merry-go-round; take me to it."

In an unprecedented instant, Ruby was happy again—that is, enthusiastic in a somewhat subdued state; however, the squeeze she gave her partner's hand was clearly visible and her cheery smile found its strength once more. And it was only then that Blake realized this had been an example she was expected to follow.

The younger partnership began their travels, walking away from the taller two without so much as glancing at Yang or her self-destruction and thereby giving Blake pause to consider how Weiss had done what she did. By being kind and encouragingly so, she had ended Ruby's unease in no time at all. It was out of character, manipulatively forceful, but it was all for the purpose of healing her partner. Regardless of personal virtues and scruples, the softening of Weiss' expression and her atypical use of physical affection led to Ruby's immediate recovery—she realized what her partner wanted from a relationship and metered it out in prescribed doses. Moreover, she had made it seem easy, as though it were a simple flip of a switch from characteristic to caring. Ruby's stride widened and her giggle rang out as they continued down this corridor and merged with the masses, making the heiress' success unmistakable.

Blake turned to Yang, finding her quietly upset. Her smile had faded by this point and her arms hung limply by her side without Ruby's presence. Her confidence was fundamentally broken because of her girlfriend's heedless aggression and now she mirrored her father, harmless by choice and apathetic by consequence. Because her father was unlikely to change as far as Blake knew and because Ruby was off being consoled by a necessary source of encouragement, this socially inept, historically spineless Faunus was the only family Yang had left. And because this apathy was her fault, Blake moved to remedy it.

She stepped in front of her partner, catching a tentative glimpse upwards from the once sunny girl and responding with a hopeful smile. Slowly, as not to frighten her, Blake reached out and took the blonde's shoulders, brushing aside unkempt hair and pulling the tentative gaze back into the realm of steadiness. Wordlessly, Blake ran her hands down the jacketed shoulders, across the relaxed biceps, and down to the girl's forearms, holding them between each other and sweeping a curious thumb across the bloodless bandage. However, the Faunus' eyes remained locked on unsteady lilac. She intended to fix this mess.

Choosing her words carefully and avoiding any mention of weakness, Blake began, "They're right, you know? We can't just stand here all day." A sigh was her partner's response. "Yang, you're doing a great job with Ruby. She seemed happy today and she seems happy to go on this merry-go-round. But I think she'd be even happier if you went with her. I know you have your reservations, but…I think she needs this."

"I know," the girl admitted, "but it used to be this whole thing with our mom, and we haven't gone there since…"

Her sentence's trailing off was indeed unsettling, but Blake maintained her smile nevertheless. "You sound like you have a lot to say about it. Tell you what, why don't we tail them for a bit and you tell me what's on your mind, and if I can't convince you to go with her by the time we get there, then we can just sit this one out." She brought her hands into Yang's own and squeezed, watching as the blonde's brows furrowed. "Sound all right?"

Another sigh marked Yang's compliance. "Yeah, I guess. Thanks, Blake."

Rather than answering her bid to turn the conversation in the Faunus' favor, Blake simply leaned forward and placed a quick kiss on Yang's cheek. Though her smile did not yet shine, the girl's frown did budge, and this was progress.

Then, in a quick, practiced motion, Blake let go of her partner's bandaged arm and curled the other around her shoulder, resting her head beneath Yang's chin and hoping to turn this present cold into eventual warmth. "Come on, then," she said. "We can't let them get too far ahead. We don't want them to have _all_ the fun today, do we?"

It was quickly made apparent that Blake lacked the ability to wink, though she did try for levity's sake. As she closed one eye, she felt her smile pull with it, making what could have been a strange expression to confuse her partner but instead eliciting a weary laugh. It was quiet and reserved, but still it was a laugh. "Yeah, okay. I'll take you there. Just…Thanks."

Blake accepted with a nod and the two walked on.

For once, Blake was grateful for the crowds around her. They were distractions at the most basic level and served to vary the directions their partnership took. Between the immutable masses below and the darkening sky above, Yang was slowly able to pull herself from her halting ennui.

Every so often, the hand on the Faunus' shoulder clenched, possibly reaffirming the fact that Blake did exist and had not yet left the blonde; and to this, Blake would smile, knowing that Yang needed positive reinforcement now more than ever. This led them to walk close together as they always did, admiring the strings of lights hung between the intervallic streetlamps and letting the final breaths of summer flutter across their skin. Amid the hearty chatter of the thankfully pleasant passersby and the moonlit labyrinth within which the two ambled, everything seemed momentarily peaceful. Behind them was a network of nothing of interest and before them was an opening into a larger avenue which soon caught Blake by surprise.

They arrived upon the town square they had once ventured nearly three months ago. It came as an initial shock that Ruby would lead them here of all places and that the bustling nightlife had not changed since. The crowds between the various stands and stalls continued to seem impenetrable while the grand pillar in the square's center still glimmered from the refracted fountain below. Fortunately, the wall of humanity no longer seemed as daunting as it had been. Ruby and Weiss could be seen parting the masses up ahead, and even then, those who moved seemed more than willing to abide by their happiness.

Perhaps it was the Faunus' intent to prove how well she had adjusted amongst a crowd and, in effect, give Yang a reason to feel good about herself, but her honest goal in pulling the blonde forwards was to take care of her and prove she was willing to do as Weiss had advised. And though Yang did remain silent with a frown pressed against her girlfriend's hair, Blake did not hesitate in leading her through the market. Beneath lanterns and a light-polluted night sky, Blake followed her leader, keeping one eye on where she and the heiress went and the other on Yang and how she felt. She was quiet as she moved, but the blonde did seem reflective, craning her head to admire one of their summer's earliest locales but never once saying anything about it.

Blake rested her head against the girl's inner shoulder, sighing contentedly at the sights before them. "So," she said, wrapping an arm around Yang's waist, "are you ready to talk?"

"Are you sure you wanna listen? I mean, it's really not a big deal."

"I don't care. I just like listening to you, and if you don't want to talk about the merry-go-round, then tell me another story. I'd be happy to listen."

To be completely honest, Blake had expected Yang to decline—it would have been just considering how she had acted as of late—but as the blonde's silent contemplation came to an end, the Faunus was relieved. "All right," Yang said. "I, uh…If you really care to listen—"

"I do. I love listening to your stories."

Some part of the golden girl was flustered, bringing on a rare blush, and this reaction only contrasted her reluctance in a fortunately telling way. "Okay, then. I guess it's all right, right?" Blake nodded. Yang sighed. "Okay, well, the uh…Uh…" She shook her head, forcing herself to go on and get over her unease. "Okay, so the merry-go-round was a thing Ruby and me used to go to. I mean, our mom took us there, but we haven't come back since she left."

"It's kind of like that place you showed me in the park, right?"

"Yeah," Yang said, an unidentifiable smile pulling weakly at her lips. "The merry-go-round was a thing she took us to whenever we went out or something—you know, when she had to go shopping or pick up ammo for her weapon. We'd always get lunch somewhere and then she'd let us go on the merry-go-round once or twice before we headed home. Ruby always loved it. Mom used to cheer her on from outside when she was on the horse, making her feel like a knight or something. Honestly, I'm kinda surprised Ruby remembers it. She was so young."

"You know, she still is young. Just because she's dating now doesn't mean she knows what she's doing. I still don't, and we've been going out for almost three months now." Blake blinked in surprise. Had it really been that long?

"I…guess. But, then again, she probably knows better than any of us. When was the last time you saw her yell at Weiss?"

"Outside of combat? Never."

Yang nodded. "She's a good girl; she's gonna do great if Weiss keeps her word." It could have been the most natural thing in the world by this point, but the pressure Yang supplied by pulling her partner closer was a quiet reassurance and one Blake warmed to immediately. "If she remembers the merry-go-round right, then I think what she's trying to do is kinda like a team building exercise, but instead of a team she's trying to build us up like a family. Which is…I don't know."

"Wasn't that your idea to begin with?" Blake smirked.

"I mean, yeah, kinda, but that was just for you and me back then." She paused. "Look, Ruby and I carry around a lot of baggage, and it'd be wrong of us to put you guys through it."

"Yang, you do know how I came to Beacon, right? I don't mean to play a game of comparisons, but we all have baggage, and you're helping me deal with mine. It'd only be right for me to help you deal with yours, too."

"But a family?"

Blake shrugged, humming into her girlfriend's side. "What's a bit of figurative language to boost someone's morale? You need it, Ruby needs it, and if Weiss is willing to play along, then I'd imagine there's at least some merit to it."

"You know that 'family' is a pretty loaded word for us, right?"

"Same with me. I didn't have a family for most of my life, and you and Ruby are the closest I've ever come to finding another since Sierra." The Faunus looked ahead, smiling at the other partnership's faraway laugh. "I mean, my mom and dad will always mean a lot to me and I do owe them my time, but you've been there for me when I had no one else. Family might be a loaded word for you, and I know you and Ruby must be scared of it after all you've lost, but seeing how much we've changed since coming together and considering how far we'd go to keep each other safe, I think the word fits."

"So, you're not gonna let it go?"

Blake shook her head. "There's nothing to let go of, Yang. I promised I'd never leave you and I said that I love you, and if that's not reason enough to feel confident, then I just have to prove it to you. We might not be related, but we're family one way or another."

A deep breath shook the taller girl and was followed soon after by a spark of her regular warmth. "Okay, I think I get it," she laughed softly, evidently working herself back up to sociability. "So, since we're a family and all, what does that make us? I hope it's not sisters, 'cause that'd be a little weird."

A joke. Because it was so foreign by this point, Blake could not help but giggle. In turn, a smirk grew slowly on the blonde's features. "No, not sisters. We're a bit…too different for that." With a subtle flex, the Faunus' ears tickled her partner's chin. "Wouldn't you say?"

"Maybe. Just a bit. So, does that make us—"

"Let's just leave it at family for now. We can figure out the specifics later." The two smiled independent of one another, hopeful for separate reasons. "But since we're a figurative family now, do you still have a reason not to take me to the merry-go-round? You acted like it was sacred land or something."

"Sorry if it sounded like that. It's just an important place to me. I kinda don't want to admit it, but going back there is gonna be tough. I'm afraid I'm gonna see mom there or remember something that'll just make me blow up. I don't know."

"Well, if it's any consolation, I'll be there for you. That is, if the spinning doesn't mess me up—I'd like to think I learned my lesson the first time."

"Hey, I'm sorry about that. Really, that was my bad. I shouldn't have—"

"Yang," the girl in reference looked down to her partner, "you don't need to apologize for that. I might have gotten sick afterwards, but in that moment, I was happy. And I was glad you were letting me take part in one of your family traditions. I was too preoccupied with having fun to remember my limits, and I don't regret a second of it." Blake smiled. "Hopefully, we can do something like that again with the merry-go-round, except, you know, without the motion sickness."

"Good thing I'm not at the helm this time, huh?"

She meant this, and it was crushing. However, Blake kept smiling. "I wouldn't say it's a _good_ thing, per se, but at least we won't have anything to stress over. We've had a bit too much to worry about as of late, and I think we deserve a break."

"Yeah, a break sounds good—I mean, not like _that_ kind of break, but, like, you know…" She groaned and allowed herself to slump against her girlfriend's form. Her cheek came to rest atop Blake's head and her eyes looked out at the high-rises ahead. "God, I used to be so good at this stuff. What happened to me?"

"I'm sorry, Yang, but that's a question only you have an answer for. Whatever happened is still ongoing, but I'm positive that once you figure this all out, you'll come out stronger for it." The Faunus then pulled Yang closer, reassuring her before negativity could take hold. "I hated the White Fang and couldn't figure out what I needed to do about my situation, but after I met you, I found it easier to appreciate everything I went through to get where I am. It's not going to be an easy path to take, and I promise I'll be there for you every step of the way, but I know you'll feel better when all of this is over."

"I know, kitten, it's just…tough. I don't even have a good reason to be feeling this way, but it's like a nightmare I just can't wake up from. You get that, right? I mean, I'm not _actually_ losing it, am I?"

As they walked the Ruby-led path through the grid of stands and stores, Blake could not help but look out at the fountain they passed. How easy it must have been to be solid and have but one purpose in life. Humans and, to an equal degree, Faunus were so fragile no matter how long they spent training themselves for loss. Ruby and Weiss made it seem so easy, leaning on each other for occasional support without so much as touching one another. And yet no matter how much Blake clung to Yang, they only seemed to waver. She watched the pillar pass by, knowing that this would be the last time she would see it for a long time in the best case scenario.

"No, you're not." Despite her outward happiness, the Faunus' voice cracked, quietly as not to pull Yang's attention yet throatily enough to not forgive herself. "I think you're figuring things out, and it just so happens that all those things are a little more abstract than any of us would like. It's tough, Yang. It's tough on all of us."

She shook her head, smiling through her pain. It was what Yang would have done. "But we'll get through it. We'll figure this out as a team or a family or whatever you need, but we'll figure it out in the end. If you're losing it, then I'm losing touch, and though I do like to be alone sometimes, I don't like being alone without you anymore. And I'm not losing touch, Yang; if anything, I'm more in-touch than I've ever been. If you were losing it, then this summer never would have happened, I wouldn't be your girlfriend, and Ruby wouldn't be as happy as she is now. I know it's difficult after all the things we've done to each other and all that's been done to us, but we're going to be okay. I don't know when, and I really hope it's soon, but it'll all be okay once we figure everything out."

"But it's a question only I have an answer for."

Blake frowned. "It is. I wish I could help, but you have all the information."

"A question only I have the answer to? Huh." She shook her head and laughed. Whether the noise was bitter or rueful could not be told, but she was indeed frustrated behind her blossoming façade. "Way to go philosophical and stuff on me, Blake. You know I'm not smart about things like this. I don't even know what the question is. Not even a clue."

"Well…" Blake looked back to that final day of her affiliation. There were not many questions running through her mind, admittedly, more than there were warning flags, but she had been in a similar place as Yang was now. "Well, first ask yourself why you're upset. Start with the root and move your way up from there."

"I…I'll try. I just don't know why I'm like this."

"Yeah, you do. You just can't see it yet."

Nothing more was said on the matter. Yang simply squeezed her partner close, pulling the Faunus against her chest and burying her nose in her raven hair. But perhaps this was more telling than words could ever be. Blake squeezed back and let Yang have her fill of physical comfort, knowing that Ruby would only serve the same purpose were she in her position. However, knowing that she could still hang on to her partner and love her without restraint was cause enough to eliminate her worry and smirk gratefully into the chain of the amber pendant.

The walls closed around the couple as the next corridor pulled them in. By this point, Ruby was all but bouncing with the spring in her step which Weiss had given her while the heiress, herself, goaded her on with chiding attempts at jokes. But Blake could only glance. Almost entirely, her gaze was fixed on the far lapel of the blonde's jacket, watching the material sway with each step but the underlying armor stay put. Every once in a while, she would look to the guiding couple or the crowd-given excitement around them or even pull herself from beneath the girl's chin to see her faraway frown and the furtive glances she sent this way and that. Her pain had never been about their destination or the path they were to take. Like Blake, her pain came in the form of her past and her fear was of its repetition.

The rest of their walk would go by in utter, unyielding silence. No kisses were tried, no verbal condolences; only hugs were allowed as Blake waited on her partner's silent journey to run its course. She loved Yang like she had no other, but no matter how she felt, this was a struggle Yang had to deal with on her own. It was frustrating to be sure and Blake did want to help, but she knew that if she tried, she would only make Yang feel weaker and less independent than she once had been. This was her fight, and although Blake would be there for the golden girl, her participation would only occur at their journey's end, when Yang's side of the divide was closed and therefore safe for recuperative assistance.

Between the mirrored glass high-rises of far away and, even more closely, between the two-storied rows of downtown architecture to either side, Ruby and Weiss marched towards the opposite end of this promenade, heedless of potential dangers to their combined certitude and blissfully happy in their hard-fought peace. Meanwhile, the older couple switched between hopeful false smiles and grim looks of unintended pessimism. These expressions, however, would all come together in a sort of level pause as they beheld the end to this final path.

This was the convergence of six similar roads before them, all leading to a central point of a spinning, red-and-white spectacle of golden horses and black carriages. It spun and spun and the horses galloped up and down, and all the four could do was stare, the foremost two chatting about their now shared enthusiasm while the hindmost found fortunate distraction in the patterns. From the misty lightbulbs and carnival tent top above, down to the scuffed paint where the ride nearly met the stone below, Blake knew this place was well past its contemporary vogue yet it would outlive them all by centuries if its novelty had lasted even this long.

It was haunting in a way, seeing the full moon rise above this night's final stop and the last traces of hazy orange disappear as dark clouds crept in from the bay. This place was a memory for Yang and thus possible closure if she could recover soon, but it only hurt in its current state.

"Come on!" Ruby shouted at them, grinning widely at her downtrodden sister. "Yang, it's still here! It's gonna be so awesome!" As the older two approached, the young girl took her partner's hand again. "Come on, Weiss. Let's go get in line!"

And so they did. With surprising energy from the impersonal heiress, the two practically ran to the encompassing stanchions and entered the queue with unerring smiles. It was a youthful sight, something neither Blake nor Yang could ever have but something they could nevertheless admire and follow after. Yang was slow-moving to this, admittedly, and dragged her feet to the old-world monument, but perhaps this should have been expected.

Yang believed she was not smart, and although her reading comprehension could be spotty at times and her enthusiasm for mathematics rested only in what she could apply to her machinations, she could be too thoughtful for her own good. World history was not her interest, but personal histories and histories of the things she loved—Ruby, Blake, Vale—meant so much to her that the sight of a park bench, the mention of a surname, and her arrival upon this spinning, still living attraction had pulled her base of confidence out from beneath her. She had found her confidence by avoiding these things and keeping them as simple memories. But now that her past was coming back to haunt her, it hurt incredibly—this was guilt meeting a lack of closure and, therefore, an unwanted inability to be completely strong.

As they joined Ruby and Weiss among the crowd of demographics both young and unburdened, Blake and Yang simply held to one another, frowning by this point and remaining as close as possible so to communicate their respective vows of fidelity.

Weiss turned, looking over her shoulder to regard the arriving partnership. "Well, you two certainly look more chipper than usual. What's wrong?"

"Life," Yang sighed.

"Blake? Care to answer with something other than a one-word response?"

"Not really."

"Okay, now if we could just get past three syllables, that would be fantastic." The heiress looked to her partner, watching the younger girl's expression shift into silent solemnity, before frowning at the dour two. "I thought we went over this already. You should know better than to enable this sort of behavior, Blake. And Yang, this isn't about you anymore. You have more people to care about than just yourself, so show some backbone for once in your life."

A sudden burst of heat startled everyone in the vicinity, from the youngest children waiting with their parents to the stalwart girl in white.

"Do you ever shut up? Do you ever stop lecturing people about stuff you don't know _anything _about?" Scarlet hues flashed in Yang's struggling lilac as her heat steadily grew. "I know this isn't about me. That's why I'm mad. I'm mad because there's _nothing_ I can do to help you guys and I'm just becoming more and more irrelevant because of it. This is about you and Ruby and Blake, and whenever you guys are hurt, all I can do is mess things up."

Blake had to step away. The fire burning in her partner was becoming painful to the touch, and although her mind wanted her to hang on and soothe this fury as she once had, her body was skittish of another burn. However, in her stead came Ruby, rushing forward and enveloping her sister in a desperate hug. "You're not irrelevant, Yang!" Almost entirely, the fire petered out; however, a reluctant ember yet tested the young leader's resolve. "You're a part of this team and you always will be. We love you, Yang, and you totally help us all the time. I wouldn't even be here right now if you didn't want to become a huntress. And Weiss and I wouldn't be together if you didn't let us!"

"Yeah, but now you've got her," sighed her sister. "I've run my course already."

Ruby's brows furrowed. "But you're my sister!"

"Not a very good one."

"But you are!" Between the unsubtle waves of heat Yang was giving off and the emotion pouring from Ruby's insistences, the people in the line surrounding appeared uncomfortable, nagging at their collars and looking away as though they were ignorant to the conversation they doubtlessly heard. But Blake paid them no heed, instead placing a steady hand on her girlfriend's shoulder and keeping the blonde's attention focused on Ruby. "You're, like, the best, Yang! And you've always been there for me. After mom died, you were, like, the _only one_ there for me. And you always were there, even when you needed to be somewhere else."

"Yang, she's not lying." A heated glare was sent Weiss' way. "Anytime I can get her to open up on a topic, all she turns to is weaponry, hunting, or you. And from what she's said, you're the root cause of the former two. She's obsessed."

Yang was silent, obviously trying to find a way to fight back. However, Blake ended this fear with a squeeze to her shoulder. "You really are the best, Yang. But even the best can fall down sometimes; the great thing about you is that you always pick yourself back up and come out stronger for it. You've always helped others—all you do is for either Ruby or me—and the lengths you go to for us are simply selfless. You're the furthest thing from a bad sister, Yang, and you've always been a great person.

"Just let us help you." The line ahead had moved but the team had not. Those behind them became quickly agitated since it was all their turn to board the carousel, but Blake did not care. "You've earned the right to be selfish about something and find catharsis for all you've done. You deserve closure and for someone to take care of you for once. You deserve to be happy, Yang. I miss your smile and all your dumb jokes, and I just want to help you find them again. I want to help you find the answers you've been looking for and make you happy as best I can. But I can only do that if you let me." She tried a smile. "Will you let me help you?"

A shout from the ride's operator shook the four from their intervention, and the shout was only furthered in its urgency by the impatience of the now boisterous queue.

Yang sighed. "Come on, guys. Let's get on." Without another word, she took Blake and Ruby by their shoulders and pulled them towards the merry-go-round, pushing the leading heiress forwards in the process and avoiding the Faunus' question.

The metal platform groaned under their collective weight. They did not bother paying the man at the gate since he had angrily rushed them through, but even the city's silent scorn could not slow Yang's pace. No, it did not need assistance to be slow. However fearful or tired she might have been, her stride was resolute and steady—a pained obligation—and as she led her team to what would be their section of the ride, she dared not look at any of them.

Blake turned to her. "Yang?" she called, forcing a hopeful smile. "Look. A cute little pony." She brought the girl's gaze to the duo of lifeless, gilded horses before them. "Remember, Yang? That was—"

"Yeah, I get it, Blake."

Ruby pulled ahead, taking her sister's hand in both of her own and urging her towards the horses. "C'mon, Yang! Let's get on! It'll be just like when we were kids!" She tugged on the hand but only managed to shift her sister's glove. "Yang, please? C'mon! It'll be fun and you'll feel better after. I promise!"

"Ruby…" The young girl frowned. "I'm…tired. I think I'm just gonna sit down for this one. Why don't you get Weiss to go with you or something?"

"But mom always—"

"Mom's not here."

Ruby hesitated. It took her a moment to either say anything or even breathe, but once she registered what Yang was saying, she nodded. "O-okay. W-Weiss?" she stammered, eyes wide as she turned to her partner. "Do you…Do you wanna take the other horse?"

A reprimanding glare was sent Yang's way by the heiress; however, she spent little time in this state. As Blake cared for Yang, Weiss cared for Ruby and Ruby alone. She nodded. "Sure. It sounds like fun." Placing a hand on the young girl's back, Weiss led her leader away, saying, "Let's get you on the saddle before someone else gets impatient and starts the ride without us."

She pushed Ruby along, softly so not to force her from Yang but forcefully so not to be too soft. The blonde's attention stayed locked on her sister, torn between remorseful and externally confident, but when the young girl's gaze left her and turned to the horse ahead, she stopped them.

"Weiss," she called, sighing a heavy sigh as she began to rummage through her jacket pocket. "Here. There's something I need to give you before you find another reason to hate me." She pulled out a white card, immediately offering it to its rightful owner. "I took it before we left Beacon. I thought you wouldn't notice since you have so many, but now…It's yours. Sorry."

"Keep it." Yang seemed stunned—that is, stunned in a relative sense compared to her current inexpression. "Consider it another birthday gift or, if you want, a thank-you for letting me date Ruby."

"But there's _a lot_ of—"

"I know. And I know there will continue to be by the time it expires." Contrary to what was expected, Weiss smiled at the blonde. "Just because my family is wealthy doesn't mean we're spendthrifts; and just because you and your sister are dreamers doesn't mean you are, either. Aside from those airship tickets, you've been frugal with that card, and so long as you continue to be, you can keep it." She smirked. "Consider it my leverage on you."

"Weiss, I don't want to steal from your family."

"You aren't. You're stealing from me." She turned back to Ruby and helped her jump up onto the horse. "Besides, that is our team's funding, and since you're a part of that team and our de facto Den Mother, you have free reign on whether those funds go to ocean-side dinner dates or experimental ammunitions. Of course, that could all go away if you abuse it, but you already know not to cross me."

"Weiss, this is _a lot_. I mean way too much."

"Good. It gives us a leg up on the other teams then, doesn't it?" Now that her partner was seated, Weiss stepped back to her own horse and raised herself up to ride sidesaddle. As she grabbed the metal pole beside her, she smiled upon Ruby to make sure she was all right. And after receiving a calmed nod from the young leader, she turned back to Yang. "As I said, keep it. It's a gift, it's leverage, it's…it's a bridge. I doubt we'll ever become the friends Ruby wants us to be, but that doesn't mean we need to believe the hateful things we say. This can be our fresh start, so to say. Who knows? You're resourceful; perhaps you could even find a way to buy a spine with all that money."

Suddenly, the platform lurched forward, catching Blake off guard and causing Yang to sigh dejectedly. She pocketed the card and turned away, walking towards the black carriage behind her with Blake in tow.

A subtle shake was felt as the blonde unceremoniously slumped into the plastic bench, arms crossed in unwitting defiance at the thoughts likely running through her mind. Blake simply watched her for a moment as she ignored the operator's objections, wanting to do something but not knowing what. She was in this same spot again, self-improvement or not—she was scared again and a coward for not doing anything. However, seeing Yang this upset, this close to tears, struck an overriding chord in the Faunus. This entire summer, while orchestrated from the outset, had been championed by improvisation. Neither of them had known what they were getting into, how fast they would move, or what effects their negligence would cause, but seeing Yang like this struck the same foolhardy chord Blake had felt on that fateful day in the park so long ago.

She sat next to her partner, not saying anything at first but instead simply resting. Desperately, she wanted to reach out and hold Yang, but this had proven ineffective in these most recent hours and anything reassuring she could say had been lost to uncertainty. However, Yang had allowed her to share the bench and did not recoil when she moved closer—though, this could be normal considering her natural proclivity to closeness. As such, Blake resigned to simply being there for her partner without saying anything needless.

Fortunately, she was surprised when Yang spoke first.

"I love you, Blake, and I always will. Whatever I'm doing right now, whatever I'm saying, it's…well, I guess it's just another phase. But we're not. We're not a phase." With a quiet breath, she moved in her seat, leaning towards Blake but not stopping at her shoulder. With a bit of readjustment, her head came to rest in her partner's lap, legs pulled up into their seat and arms wrapped around them. "And I'm sorry. I've done a lot of things wrong to you and I want to take them all back. I know you forgive me, but I don't.

"I guess I've never been a great girlfriend—really, I don't think I've ever been a _good_ one. Like, that guy when I was eleven probably didn't approach me for a while 'cause I kept pushing him away. And the guy who talked me into…stuff…probably was able to do it 'cause I was spineless."

All Blake could offer was a combing hand through her chilling hair. Yang shuddered.

"I'm not good for you, Blake. You deserve someone better—someone smarter and someone who doesn't make racist jokes. All I'm good at is punching things and messing up. No wonder I'm blonde."

Perhaps it was the lattermost physical insecurity that broke Blake of her immobility or perhaps it was the rationalizations Yang made against their relationship. Whatever the case, the Faunus' hand stopped. "Yang, you're the greatest thing that's ever happened to me. You're not a bad influence, you're not a bad sister, and you're not perfect, either. And neither am I. But you're perfect to me, sadness and all, and whatever you're afraid of is something I'll help you get through. I love you, too, Yang, and there's no one else I can see myself with.

"So, I'll fight for you—I'll fight with you. I promised I'd never leave you and I don't plan on doing that for the rest of my life. Even if you tell me there's someone better, I'll stick with you because you _are_ the best." She swept a thumb across the corner of Yang's eye, finding impossible moisture in small, concealed volumes. "I love you, Yang. Whatever's going on, we'll get through this together. I promise."

Yang said nothing in return. She merely shuddered again, adjusted her position on Blake's lap, and let out a whisper of a whine not even the young Faunus' ears could recognize.

With their collective silence, a shared gaze was found—not between themselves but towards the happier couple. Ruby was smiling again as her horse drifted upwards and downwards, shining brightly beneath the old yellow lights. Weiss looked similarly happy, reserving her laughs as mere shakes of the head and speaking freely with her enemy turned friend. No matter how fast the ride moved or how much their horses distanced themselves, they seemed closer than ever—they could have been miles apart and yet they smiled as though their fingers were intertwined. And they deserved this, just as much as Yang did.

Her uncharacteristic silence was haunting, but Blake saw this only as part of the recovery process. Of course, she could not bear to see it any other way, but she was troubled, too. No matter what the crowd thought of her, no matter how long she had been away from her parents, everything would be all right so long as she had Yang. And although it felt as if the world was slipping out from beneath her for the third major time in her life, this was a rift she would strive to close. This was about closure and Yang, courage and Blake, restitution and just penance, but all Blake could think about was Yang. This was not about herself or her own catharsis but instead Yang's. She deserved to be happy, and with the team—no, family—she had around her, it was but an inevitability. Unfortunately, it was only inevitable in the long run.

Far above the red and white spectacle which spun like a languid, cheery top, black clouds gathered. There was no thunder or warning of what was to come, simply rain. It fell in torrents on the faraway bay, battering the seaside shack and esplanade beside it, raising the waters of the few remaining canals, and slicking the blacktop roads set between skyscrapers and houses alike. But it moved slowly, building to a fiery head. To those affected, it was nothing more than inconveniencing on their ability to leave home, but to those still unaware, a shadowy wall of furious rains marched slowly on their position, ceaseless in its assault and indiscriminate of what it destroyed.

* * *

And so the third storm of this novel rolls in. Don't worry; I'm not going to spoil anything about it since information's becoming pretty sensitive at this point. All I can say is that I'm excited. To tell you the truth, I've been waiting since, like, chapter three to write nineteen, and it's been a heck of a wait. Hopefully it'll work out.

Anyways, chapter eighteen reflections.

The original concept for this chapter was a sort of return to form. I wanted to go back to earlier instalments and revisit the way Team RWBY saw Vale through fresh, eager eyes and then translate that into their current level of understanding and characterization. I don't think I captured what little magic existed in those earlier instalments and I didn't really intend to give a nostalgic feeling, but re-editing the chapters showed me how far this story has come. I mean, I had an idea, but re-immersing myself in those adventures proved how much Yang has changed Blake, how much Ruby has changed Weiss, and how the world's stresses were perceived from their earliest days of summer break to their latest. Comparing the Blakes of then and now shows some shortfalls but as well a great deal of personal growth. Yang, meanwhile, has almost been completely dismantled, showing her weaknesses and insecurities above both her façades and realities of strength. And I'm not even going to start on Ruby and Weiss; that'd take about five chapters and 130,000 words.

But in comparing their characters, I needed to give them free reign over their motives in this chapter. Of course, we still have the tensions between Blake and Yang, Yang and Weiss, Ruby and Yang, and loud noises and cat ears, but I wanted them each to have the chance to show their present versions of their characters. This meant letting them all soliloquize, interact, and react to each other's actions with more screen time than prior entries.

Moreover, I had the chance to build their relationships even further, although not in the romantic sense. First, Blake was pulled into a Rose family group hug, thereby solidifying her as an important figure in Ruby's life. Then Weiss and Blake had a couple talks wherein Weiss was surprisingly the one giving relationship advice after the events of _Edelweiss_. To be honest, I had a lot of fun with their payoff. Finally, on top of all the Bumblebee, White Rose, and sibling stuff, having Weiss extend an exorbitant olive branch to Yang was telling of their relationship's current status. Although it doesn't necessitate best-friendship, it does force them to be on good terms, one way or the other—seriously, with the money that card holds, Yang would need a _really_ good reason to threaten Weiss again. Seeing how far they've come and how well it all turned out is something I'm admittedly proud of.

One of the larger challenges of this story has been to interweave the main four in a way which cements them as friends. I know they've been a team for a year prior to this novel, but just because people have to work together doesn't mean they have to like each other or even befriend each other. However, I'm not saying they weren't friends before. I just wanted to make as many links between the characters as I could, giving them romantic relationships, gifts, arguments, leverage over one another, and even distrust. In this way, I could make the characters inseparable because of everything they've gone through together, not just because "They're a team, ergo they're best friends." With this chapter, I wanted to show how much their friendships have grown. Even if it was on the bittersweet side altogether, the point was to show that they can still remain friends despite the ongoing turmoil.

But at the same time, I wanted to test them, break them down entirely and expose their innermost characters before building them back up around each other. While their friendships are strong, I needed their romantic relationships to be stronger, necessary even. Both stories, _Valence_ and _Edelweiss_, start out with simple, fluffy shipping, but as the characters learn more about each other and stumble in the process, they begin to realize that having a shoulder to lean on is not too shabby. From there, they become addicted. And Blake and Yang still are, but for the sake of avoiding spoilers, I can't speak much on their instability. All I can say is that although they are in pain, their best sources of comfort are still each other and thus they _need_ each other for that.

One more thing I want to talk about is Weiss' mention of "the divide" or "the rift" between Blake and Yang. This is actually a cross-over from _Edelweiss_ and what she learned from her relationship with Ruby. In case you haven't read it, I'll avoid saying too much, but the things she says to Blake in this chapter come almost entirely from what she learned about bettering herself for Ruby's sake. The only difference is that she's applying her solution to Blake's situation. It might work, it might not, but the fact that Weiss can interpret Blake and Yang's strife is telling of how her character has changed.

To that end, I pretty much have to plug _Edelweiss_ again. The reason this chapter took a month longer than it probably should have was due in large to the final chapter of _Edelweiss_ being written and posted. Now that that novel has been completed, I can return to _Valence_ and start on chapter nineteen very soon. However, if you're looking for something to read in the meantime and happen to fancy White Rose, then _Edelweiss_ is the novel for you. Who knows? Maybe you can find something out about _Valence_'s future by the time you're finished.

Now, there's just one last thing. I mentioned in the beginning author's note that I was re-editing chapters. First, before anyone jumps to conclusions, I'm not retconning _Valence_. Everything's the same early on, I'm just cleaning up grammar and coherency issues. The problem arose when I changed editing styles and realized everything before that point looked rushed; rather than spending an entire week on editing as I do now, I had taken two or three days. This means that chapters up to seven will be re-edited to my current standards. The story will be the same and most of the information will be there (I'm removing unnecessary and redundant sentences). The only changes will be in grammar and fluency.

Unfortunately, this is messing with the page numbering in the PDFs. For that, I apologize. Updated PDF versions should be up by the time the next chapter is released. Sorry for the inconvenience.

And thus concludes my ramblings.

Thank you for reading. I had fun writing this chapter, as dour as it turned out to be, and I hope you enjoyed it, too. I'm really sorry for not updating this story in a timely fashion, and hopefully I can make it up to you by fulfilling the promises of quality I've made. To be completely candid, there were days during the writing of this chapter where my motivation tanked and my enthusiasm gave up the ghost, but being able to look through this story's reviews and hold conversations with a few of you made my time markedly easier. I'm very fortunate to have Fanfiction as a lifeline of sorts, and I'm still surprised I'm able to say that honestly. You all are lifesavers. Really, you mean a lot.

Thank you.

Two chapters remain.

Stay safe and stay tuned.


	19. Chapter 19: Absolution

I'm excited about this one. There's nothing I can say as to why I'm excited, lest I spoil what's to come, but just know that this one's been in the works for a long, long time. This is _Valence_'s endgame, and I couldn't be happier with it.

Also, as a brief aside, this story's PDFs have all been updated. Because some of the earlier chapters received grammatical facelifts during these past couple months, page counts were altogether thrown off and eventually made no sense at all. They now make better sense since the texts align with what's written on Fanfiction. By no means is it required of you to re-download them if you've been keeping up with _Valence_ for a while, but this update includes the revised early chapters and consistent page numbers throughout. So, if you care about consistency, the download link is in the same place it's always been on my profile.

Anyhow, back to the book. I think this one's a fun one, but maybe that's just me; I'll defer to your judgment in that regard. For now, good luck with chapter nineteen of _Valence_.

* * *

Chapter 19: Absolution

Between the four occupants of the Schnee limousine, a brutal stillness had festered, a conscience-leaden silence that ripped and tore at their already tattered patience as they coasted along this stormy road. For their parts, Ruby and Weiss looked on in separate states of composure, although the former was by no means composed—relative to her sister, Ruby was somber. Yang, meanwhile, was heartbroken, neither tearful at her own rationalizations nor affected by the assurances from those around her. And though Blake held her close, the blonde's expression yet twisted in anguish, ignoring her partner's combing efforts and causing her sister to squeeze Weiss' hand in alarm.

Beneath the torrents of this ceaseless storm, the limousine shuddered and swayed. High winds threatened to upend this otherwise defensible vehicle while the rains obscured its passage, leaving only flashing brake lights and ever-changing rivulets for the driver ahead. All the while, a northern wind gusted against the road, forcing this racket upon Team RWBY's silence.

They looked between each other in differing states of timidity. Weiss seemed almost inappropriately calm for the situation, although her gaze did shift from Ruby to Yang and quickly back to Ruby. Besides her, however, the general mood was very much in the negative. Following the team's visit to the carrousel, the only words Yang had uttered were in short, dishonest replies to questions about her status. Now she leaned with eyes half-lidded against Blake's chest, frustrated by the irrational challenges she was likely setting for herself. She understood the Faunus' devotion and thus held to it, but her mind was elsewhere, stuck on nightmare hypotheticals.

A horn blared from somewhere behind them, and in an instant the limousine was passed by a driver in the next lane. Reckless though the speed was, this distraction proved able to pull the partnerships from their stagnancy. Ruby turned to Weiss, smiled briefly, and let go of her hand. Just as quickly, she found her way to the floor between their benches and took hold of Yang's gloves.

The girl smiled. "Hey, Yang?" She was met with a frown. "Is there anything we can do to help you cheer up? We could probably put on the radio or something so it isn't _too_ gloomy in here. Weiss, we can turn on some music, right?" The heiress nodded. "See? Music always helped you calm down before, so why not try it now?"

Her only response was the continual patter against the roof, rain falling in sheets to serve their referenced gloom.

"Maybe we can run a bath for you when we get back?" Ruby tried. "That always works, right? I mean, it _was_ a kinda long day out there, and you won't get to take one at Beacon, so…" Once she realized no response would be given in this despondent state, the young girl finally frowned, more so disappointed in herself than anyone else if her tightened grip was evident. "C'mon, Yang. Say something. Just let us help."

"Ruby…" whispered the blonde. "It's…I'm fine."

Ruby shook her head, making a small disagreeing noise. "No, you're not. You keep pushing us away when we're trying to help you. And I don't wanna lecture you on that if I don't have to, but, Yang, I'm really starting to think you need it." She held a caring, tentative look that told of her unmistakable fear but as well the forceful tact her role required.

"We're all your friends, and friends help each other. That's just part of the job. And I know you gotta do everything yourself, but sometimes it's okay to ask for help. You're always here for us, so we'll always be here for you." She attempted a smile again, forcing as much hope into the expression as possible and making sure Yang saw it. "Just…It's gonna be all right, Yang. But you gotta let us help sometimes—like, not all the time, but at least sometimes."

"Ruby, you shouldn't have to do this." Yang's voice was low, frightened by the consequences she saw all around her. "I should be better. If I was better, this would all be fine."

Out of the corner of Blake's eye, Weiss budged. Her posture had straightened as though there were something she wanted to say, but this ultimately ended with a bit lip. Whether this was fortunate or not, Blake could not decide. Right now, the entire situation seemed unnatural and baffling, and all the young Faunus could do was spectate the conversation rather than participate as she was expected to. However, in her spectatorship, she could still hold on to her partner and aid Ruby's efforts, channeling warmth into the frigid form beside her.

"Yeah, maybe." Ruby sighed. "But maybe if I was better, you wouldn't be afraid to accept my help. I mean, we all need to get better, but that takes time—and experience. Maybe this is like an experience for you or something, something to show you why help helps."

Suddenly, an idea seemed to strike the girl. She smiled, honestly and excitedly. "Remember the first time we sparred at Signal? When you broke my winning streak?" Yang sent her a weary, confused look. "You showed me I wasn't the best in the school just because I was kinda good. I still remember that day because you showed me I was wrong when nobody else would, and that was really cool of you. But you also showed me that it only takes one bad experience to turn your life around, and if you deal with it right, then it can make you better."

Ruby gripped her sister's hand tighter. "Maybe this is just your bad day. I know that's not the best thing to hear right now, but maybe this means you _are _going to get better! Yeah, figuring it out's probably gonna suck, but—"

Yang closed her eyes. "Ruby, language."

"Sorry," the girl sheepishly offered. "But you get the point, right? There's something like a moral to all this, even if we don't see it right now. And I know you'll figure it out eventually, but just try letting us help. Even if today's a bad day, you don't have to let it be the worst day ever, right?"

The limousine slowed to a stop, settling amid a wreck-induced jam. Though the event itself was annoying to some inconsequential degree, this current stagnancy coupled with Yang's obstinacy tried the patience of the girls surrounding her. The wind could gust and threaten their stability and the rain could pelt with all the force it had, but Blake's concern would only be shaken by a faraway hum of thunder. At this, she held Yang tighter, not to react and upset her further but instead to pull away from her fears and take absolute solace in the girl who had helped her so many times before. But even then, Yang seemed to not see it this way.

She detached from Blake and Ruby's grips, moving to the seat beside her and holding her hands to herself as though she were cold for the first time in her life. Her head hung low upon seeing Weiss' derision, therefore missing Blake's wordless shock.

"Ruby," Yang began, "today wasn't a bad day. I had fun. Really, I did. And even if I didn't, that wouldn't matter; bad days happen, and we just get over them." She shook her head but dared not look her sister in the eye. "I mean, you even suggesting that goes to show how bad I messed up. Today was supposed to be a good day, and I really think it was in the end, but then I went and made it all about me. Weiss was right; I messed up. And I'm sorry." She heaved a ragged sigh, trying and unfortunately failing to hide her breaking voice.

With this, the team was left to a wanting silence.

Blake needed to say something—anything—but could not find the words to do her thoughts justice. An apology hung on the tip of her tongue as it always had in this waning summer month, but now she understood how worthless it was without the proper context. "I'm sorry" meant nothing if she did not know what it was for. Almost certainly, it had roots in their Sierra visit and the conversations in and surrounding it, but these alone could not account for Yang's change of character.

She was supposed to be easy-going, a sociable reflection of who Ruby had become and a constant source of warmth amid this insecure team. Instead, she was frightened now, alone in her understanding of what had gone wrong and what was to come. Whether or not she had hidden this side from the rest of the world was negligible to the fact that Blake had brought it to light. It seemed so long ago when the blonde was last openly happy and in love; now she was afraid of these emotions and the irrational potential of them abandoning her. It was Blake's fault this understanding could ever be gleaned, and were it not for her own fears and errors, then it was likely they would still be happy.

The vehicle shook from a distant rumble, but Blake could only flinch. Smiles and frowns were so far detached from what this moment demanded that she did not try for either, instead placing a hand atop her partner's hunching back. "You didn't mess up, Yang._ We_ messed up—you _and_ me. At the very least, I messed up first."

"No." The blonde shook her head. "Blake, it's not your fault. You didn't do anything. You shouldn't take responsibility for mistakes you didn't—"

"I know. But this isn't about that." Even as lightning flashed on the nearing horizon, this image of missing fire drew the Faunus' absolute attention. Before her was a soul in desperate need, not a hypothetical group or cause but a tangible instance of human suffering, and for this there was only worry. "This is about…I don't know. I don't know why we're slipping, but we are, and the fact that I can't figure this out goes to show how out of touch I am. And I'm sorry."

Yang shuddered at her partner's words, finding them incompatible with her now accepted rationale. "You're not the only one who can't figure this out. _I_ don't even know what I'm going through." Feeble bursts of energy radiated out from her form.

Weiss sighed, interjecting herself without invitation. "Perhaps that's because you're in over your head. You can't think clearly because—"

"Because I'm not cut out for this." Three pairs of disbelieving eyes turned on the girl, bewildered by this leap in logic. Yang shrugged off her partner's hand and moved even further from her team, leaning against the partition wall and looking away in shame. "I'm just a huntress; that's all I'm cut out for. All I can do is punch stuff, kill things. I'm not cut out for helping other people, especially if I can't even help myself. Like, how am I supposed to help people if I keep burning everything I touch?"

The limousine lurched ahead as the surrounding brake lights vanished altogether. Traffic had begun its forwards crawl again, and with this and the unrelenting rains came sluggishness, for as the delayed stretch of highway progressed at last, its prior blockage came into view. Even Yang, frustrated though she was, looked to the flashing police lights and saw the crash that passed them by. Flipped, totaled, pressing against the outer barrier, and with a shivering family sheltered behind it, the otherwise unremarkable sedan proved a message of caution and consequence; unfortunately, this message was given no credence by those who gazed upon it and continued their urgent rush from the storm.

However, Blake had missed it entirely. She had, of course, seen the rest of her teammates' curiosity, but her own eyes were trained on Yang. The blonde's heart visibly ached, and being the only one to stand beside her at every turn this summer, Blake knew she deserved some of the blame, too.

She wanted to reach out and sit beside her partner as would have been expected a month ago but found herself paralyzed by wordlessness and missed opportunities. Ruby, however, reached her sister first, looking to Weiss for permission then to Blake for the same before picking herself off the floor and sitting beside the blonde. It should have been Blake consoling the shivering girl, but she conceded that any sort of help was preferable to her cowardly inaction.

"It's okay, Yang. Just think about it this way: if you weren't so good at punching stuff, I wouldn't be as good of a fighter as I am now." Without hesitation, Ruby rested her head on Yang's shoulder, causing a clear shift in the older girl's emotion. "Yeah, we're not the most normal kids out there and we're not the best team of huntresses, but that doesn't mean we should feel bad about it. Like, I'm bad at talking to new people. I know it, I don't like it, but that doesn't mean it's a bad thing. It's hard for me to make friends or even find something to talk about if I don't know the person already, but when I do know someone and I know 'em for a while, everything gets easier. I start getting better at talking to them and they start to look more approachable. And after a while, we just sort of click! That's what happened with me and Weiss; she's helping me get better at talking to people, and I'm really thankful.

"I know you've got more to you than punching and killing, but if you don't believe me, believe in Blake. She _wants_ to help you and was trying to do that all day. I don't know how to anymore because I don't know what's going on and I don't think Weiss knows, either, but Blake does. She knows what you're going through because you've gone through so much together; she wants to help you like Weiss is helping me." She smiled at the heiress opposite herself, neither dutifully nor forcefully. "I like who you are, Yang. You're funny and nice and a better sister than I give you credit for, and I think you're cut out for whatever you want to be cut out for. Just…Teamwork. We aren't going to get anywhere without teamwork."

With a sigh, Yang relaxed. Her self-destructive scowl yet remained, unfortunately, and burned away whatever hope could come from this change in posture. Her head came to rest atop Ruby's own, eliciting a naïve rise in emotion from the smiling girl but a disappointed frown from Blake.

"I get it," Yang sighed. "I know what you mean. Teamwork's the way to go and I can't do everything on my own. I understand that." She put an arm around Ruby's shoulder and pulled her close, finding reprieve in the young girl's hair and incidentally sending a guilty pang through the Faunus' heart. "And I want that to be the way it is—I wanna let you guys help me and help you just as much—but I keep pushing you away for some reason. I don't communicate enough, don't let anything show when I'm feeling bad. And I don't mean I feel bad too often, but when I do, I just feel weak. Then I take it out on you guys by messing things up and not saying anything. Now Blake and me aren't even talking anymore because we don't know what to talk about."

She turned to the girl in black, trying for some sort of meek, unbefitting smile, but unfortunately sank back into sullenness upon seeing her averted gaze. "I'm sorry, Blake," was all the blonde could say now. Her arms hugged Ruby tighter, but her eyes strained at seeing her partner tear away at herself.

In the low light of the storm, the Faunus could see clearly the youngest girl's love, the quiet heiress' agitation, and the longing, pained hope radiating from Yang's expression. These, in their respective ways, were products of her inability. Had she the fortitude to remain upright and say something, Ruby would not have needed to cling to her sister, thereby eliminating Weiss' annoyance. But now she needed to say something—she needed to be strong for Yang and help her. Like Weiss had said, the onus of care rested solely on her.

"I forgive you," she whispered. Truthfully, there was nothing to forgive since there was no error to correct in the first place, but it nevertheless needed to be said.

Yang smiled. It was fragile and vulnerable, but she seemed genuine, as though this brooding mood was truly unwanted. Her hand departed from Ruby's shoulder and, with its arm still resting behind the young girl, reached out to the Faunus. She did not say anything despite her desperate look and she did not beg for her partner's acceptance; merely, she offered a momentary ceasefire with this hand extended.

However, Blake could not return the smile. Her present guilt far removed the possibility for total reparation, but she did take the blonde's hand in her want of normalcy and moved closer to the recovering sisters. Ruby did not react in the slightest as the Faunus was pulled against her, and it was only Blake who was moved by the fingers now brushing along her neck.

"I love you, Blake; I really do. It takes a special kind of person to put up with me for as long as you have and to listen to the stuff I never say." Unexpectedly, Yang's expression shifted downwards again. "You could do a whole lot better than me and I could stand to improve, myself, but I'm glad you're forgiving. If it wasn't for that, I don't think we could've gotten past a week together. All I've contributed are dumb jokes and sometimes backup, and you're still able to hold us together somehow. It's really amazing."

Her weakened smirk returned. It was a small, thankful fire in the darkness and a sign of sincere hope which slowly eased the Faunus' racing mind. The hand on Blake's neck squeezed gently, conveying a hug's emotion even with Ruby between them. "Thanks, kitten." At last, Blake was able to smile too amongst the rains and thunder and see a flickering light at the end of their collective tunnel. "Really, thanks. I did have fun today, and I don't mean to stress you or Ruby out. But it's gonna be okay now. It'll be o—"

The heiress shifted in her seat, pulling her team's gazes suddenly. Even without a Faunus' vision, it was more than apparent she was rolling her eyes. "It'll all be okay?" she interrupted. "Is that what you were going to say? Do you ever tire of saying the same thing over again while never _truly_ meaning it?"

"Weiss!" snapped Ruby, a horrified expression coming over her. "What the heck? What was that for?"

With a tired sigh, the girl in white glanced questioningly at the shocked three before setting her sights on Yang alone. "I'm sorry. That was rash of me." It was a lie, though Weiss made no attempt to mask it. "But how many times do I have to hear a variant of 'Everything will be okay' or 'It's all right?' It's been an ongoing theme this summer, and it doesn't seem to lead anywhere when you say it—either there's nothing to forgive or you're simply lying to yourselves."

Yang's smirk disappeared, the hope in her eyes vanished, and in their place came not a frown but a far more sinister neutrality. She had taken this lashing to heart, and thus resigned to self-reflection, sending Blake into an unexpected fury.

Amber eyes flashed in the dark. "Do you mind? We're trying to help Yang right now, not cater to you."

"Oh, that's _incredibly_ apparent. I haven't been able to avoid that fact for nearly a month now, but thank you for reminding me." Perhaps it had been wrong to instigate this fight, Blake thought. Of course, it was too late to take her words back and even if she were to apologize, she had hastily lit a fire on a short fuse.

"You see, I don't care if she's upset. Right now, she has every right to be this way because there hasn't been a word of stability between you yet. All you do is promise each other things, but whenever an opportunity arises, you let impulse lead you from your plans. That leads to instability. You have no plans, no goals, only empty promises, and I'm not at all surprised Yang has become an emotional wreck. What I am surprised by, and, frankly, exasperated by, is that you've been content to stay this way for an entire month—a full thirty-one days of sulking and misery."

Weiss now glared back at her teammate, having the unfortunate advantage in her emotional detachment. Blake knew provoking her further would only end poorly for all parties involved, but at the same time, the girl had a warped view of what was going on. This crisis did not continue because of Blake or Yang's enjoyment and every promise made had yet to be broken. Further, even the matter of impulse had been confused for in-the-moment necessity.

"Content?" argued Blake. "If Yang and I were content, do you really believe I'd give up what we had before? Do you honestly think we'd involve you and Ruby if we enjoyed being in this much pain? This isn't fun for any of us, but if you think we enjoy suffering just to see you annoyed, then you couldn't be more conceited."

Ruby sat up between the unfortunate duo. "I'm sorry, Weiss, but she's right. This isn't about you right now." The look she gave her partner was surprisingly upset. In a word, she was disappointed in the heiress, and this look seemed to have a sobering effect on its recipient. "Yang's never liked being in pain. She's just not used to it—stuff doesn't hurt her. And I've never seen her in this way before, so if you're saying she's making it up, you're wrong.

"I get that you're annoyed. Really, it makes a lot of sense; I'm annoyed, too. But I'm not gonna get mad about it. You probably don't wanna admit it, but you don't like seeing Yang sad, either—kinda like how you don't like seeing me scared and nervous." The heiress looked down. "It's just not normal, and you want everything to be the same. But sometimes things mess up and we have to fix them; that's what's going on with Blake and Yang. Yeah, it's a little bit frustrating now that you mention the whole month thing, but that doesn't mean you have to be mean about it—that's just gonna make things worse."

She sighed and turned her head to face Blake, offering a calmer and fortunately friendlier expression. "And Blake? Weiss isn't trying to start anything. Sorry if it came off like that. Really, she cares about Yang like you and me, but she just shows it differently—I'd know; she might not be nice all the time, but she's trying to help, too."

"I am," said Weiss quietly, if not reluctantly. "You and Ruby have your ways of placating a situation, I have mine, and so does Yang. Unfortunately, none of your methods seems to be having an effect here and I can't suppose mine are doing much better. But I had to try. We made a poor choice in staying out for as long as we did and I'm not particularly fond of lengthy travel, so I apologize for my temper. But I will not apologize for what I said because it needed to be heard."

A moment later, the limousine changed lanes and its passengers soon felt the pull of its descent down the off-ramp. With a sigh, Weiss seemed to rid herself of whatever tensions gripped her. "Finally," she breathed, shaking her head and looking back to the uncertain three. "My point isn't that you enjoy your pain but that you seem fixated on your chosen methods. There's no innovation between you, no adaptation. You simply say everything will be all right and hug. Regardless of its previous effectiveness, you two are at an obvious standstill and your method's potency has worn off. I've heard your reassurances one too many times, and I can only assume that whatever you keep trying isn't working.

"Yang," she sighed, pulling the blonde's once again hesitant expression. "I'm sorry. No matter what little we've held between us, I can't help but sympathize with you. However, you must understand that perfection does not come naturally and it would be irresponsible to think otherwise. This sulking serves no other purpose than to hinder yourself.

"I speak from experience when I say the road to flawlessness has many forks, options you will never have the chance to travel again—it's simply impossible to become perfect altogether. I've spent my entire life studying and keeping away from unnecessary interactions while you've spent your time socializing and caring for others. We're both competent at hiding behind our respective masks, though I imagine you'd never wear mine while I simply cannot wear yours. So, if you really are looking to become perfect, I'd suggest giving up now. You'd do far better to perfect yourself instead."

The heiress then turned to Blake and shook her head. Either she was lying outright as a means of pacification, in which case this method was cruel, or she did not believe the words she said. Blake believed the latter, although this could be attributed to her rise in defensive urges.

No matter what, however, Weiss meant to help, be it for personal satisfaction or perhaps due to a shadow of empathy. Whatever the case, her speech made sense. In a normal, rational state of mind, it should be obvious that all-around perfection would be impossible. But when their combined expertise, now being of a skeptically low credibility, was unable to quiet this gale tearing the taller two apart, rationality proved similarly unreasonable. Yang needed to understand this, harshly worded though it was.

In this way, Blake found herself in agreement, excluding the chosen tone. "Yang, if this is about you not measuring up to my expectations, you don't have to worry." She knew a smile would be perhaps too much despite its reassuring intent, and as such, both girls frowned. "I honestly don't have any expectations for you. I have standards, sure, but you've met them already; even then, that doesn't change what I think about you as a person. All this talk of not being smart enough or strong enough or even cut out for this is unwarranted. I like you just the way you are, Yang, and so does everyone else here."

The Faunus then placed a hand on her partner's knee, reaching across her leader's lap and inadvertently squeezing her between them. Fortunately, the young girl did not voice her objection. Though Ruby did not smile any longer, her focus was similarly on Yang's recovery, and this led to the immediate hug she gave the blonde. Weiss was still somewhat agitated at how long it was taking to return home, but Blake knew she would behave—their brief argument, although a loss, had seemingly settled the heiress' temper. Yang, unfortunately, went unmoved by these reassurances.

"Nice of you to say," she sighed, "but that's not true, is it?"

"What? Of course it is."

She shook her head. "Blake, I get it. You like me. But you don't have to lie to me. I'm…lacking. You and me like different stuff, but the problem is that you can actually talk to me about the stuff I like—movies, games, guns, whatever. You're smart enough to do that. But I'm not smart enough to talk about the stuff you like." Her voice lowered to a self-effacing murmur. "Like, I can't even remember the last time I read a real book. And all the stuff you read doesn't sound like stuff I'd like. So, what are we gonna talk about down the road if I'm not smart enough to understand the things you like?"

"Does that really matter?" offered Blake. "We always find something to talk about anyway; you make sure of that. Besides, you _do_ ask about the books I read. It's obvious you care to understand."

"But I just don't!" A quick wave of heat radiated from the girl in yellow. "Don't you get it, Blake? I'm not cut out for the long run. We have it good now, but in a year? Two? What about after Beacon? We're probably gonna get stationed in different places and we might not see each other for a while. What then? Most of the stuff you and your mom talked about was what you guys read, and that seemed to work great. I mean, I can _ask_ about your books, but _talk_ about them? I'm just not cut out for you. I'm nothing in the long run, Blake. I'm just a short-run fling."

Involuntarily, the hand on Yang's knee clenched. Her bitter sentiments were painfully uncharacteristic, but this "fling" notion had been the single most alarming observation Blake had heard from the girl. However, this was only the cause of the clench; her mind and arguments lingered on other terms.

The Faunus' gaze turned in tentative disbelief towards the heiress. "Long run" and "short run" were not terms Yang would ever use. These were economic terms, and though Yang must have been somewhat good with money considering the house she veritably owned and maintained, Weiss was the only one here who had a formal education in the science. Moreover, these terms had been used in the heiress' private speech during their city walk. As soon as her blue eyes shifted away from Blake's silent accusation, it was made apparent that the conversation had indeed been private but not at all exclusive.

With a frustrated growl, Blake returned to Yang, intent on fixing this mistake. "For what it's worth, I don't see us that way. In fact, I thought I would be different from the," she glanced at the heiress, changing her wording to avoid a breach of trust, "others. I made you a promise, and that promise directly contradicts the possibility of a fling. We're better than that, Yang; we've been through a lot together and we'll continue to do so in the coming years."

"But that's the thing. We were supposed to be in good shape, but I messed us up."

The rain calmed for a moment, a rattling respite which allowed the Faunus to see where they were. The plazas of suburban businesses with their flashing open signs and stubborn, rain-locked patrons zipped by the limousine's windows. They were nearing home faster than anticipated; perhaps it was impatience on the driver's part or simple distraction found in this turmoil. But no matter what, Blake knew that if they were to return home with these issues unresolved, only more problems would arise. And it was unlikely these resultant problems could be fixed by the time they returned to Beacon.

"I don't understand." The surrounding three turned to Blake, just as uncertain. "You keep saying you messed up, but I don't see it. How did you mess up? When?"

"When I yelled at you after the music store…"

"That? Yang, you had every right to yell at me then. I was being unreasonable and yelling at you, too. But if you think you were at fault because of the mistakes _I_ made…I don't know. Yang, it's just…Blame _me_ for that!"

"I can't do it. I just…No. You know I started that whole argument; _I_ was the one who walked us through the crowd in the first place. I even knew you didn't like it and I thought I could protect you, but it just didn't turn out that way." The blonde leaned somehow further against the partition wall, trying to pull away from Ruby's hug and moving her leg to escape Blake's hand. "Your dad told me to take care of you and then I made you sick and now your mom doesn't trust me and Ruby doesn't, either, 'cause I tried to stop her and—"

"Yang," Blake interrupted, pulling her hand away and giving Ruby some needed space. "Those weren't your fault. None of them were."

"Yes, they were!" The rest of the team shied away from the blonde's rise in volume as Blake withheld a wince. "Don't lie to me, Blake. It doesn't matter who did what; I started those things, so it was my fault." Rather than a radiating heat which had since been expected from Yang's emotional outbursts, a sapping cold gathered in the area around her. Although it was obvious she did not believe her own arguments, she was unwittingly convinced by them.

Regardless, the Faunus could not help but frown at her partner's accusation. "I'm not lying to you. I'm not trying to hide anything from you."

"Yang, be reasonable." The cold had sent a chill across the heiress' features, steeling her expression and causing her to hold to herself for warmth. "The words you had with me were entirely justified. Ruby and I dating must have come as a surprise, and had you not confronted me the way you did, well, I would assume something was wrong. You _are_ protective by nature and care for those you hold stock in, which is something I can't say for my own family.

"However, the thought that you hurt Ruby in some way by arguing with me is completely absurd. The only reaction she had was feeling bad for me after the fact but could find no reason to demonize you. At the very worst, your actions made me hesitant to progress, but even then, I've gotten over it."

"And me too," Ruby added. "I mean, it was kinda scary when it happened, but I guess I've always kinda known you'd do something like that. You know how dad got when you started dating, and compared to how you get sometimes, he's pretty laid back. I didn't want you looking over my shoulder and stuff, but you never did that, and I'm happy you gave me some space."

Rather than hugging her sister again, Ruby sat up and turned to face her with an assuring, genuine smile to help her point along. "I don't think you've ever hurt anybody you didn't mean to. Yeah, you can get pretty mad sometimes, but never at me and _never_ at Blake. I don't know what happened when you guys went to Sierra, but it sounds like those really were accidents. And what happened with Weiss and me?" She shrugged. "You didn't _have_ to do it, but I'm kinda happy you did. Made it seem like I was actually in a real relationship, having you freak out and stuff."

The limousine began to slow as the rain picked back up. Ruby's smile widened in a quick flash as she silently promised Yang everything would be all right. They were almost home now, taking the penultimate turn and reaching a street which had regularly been excused of traffic. At any other point in time, this closeness would be something to be thankful for, but considering the state Yang was in, there was not nearly enough time left.

She was still unconvinced and proved this through her tentative expression. Ruby had since left her after checking where they were, moving back to Weiss' side and whispering the information with equal uncertainty. It was as if all eyes were on the older sister, and though this was indeed the case, the strain this put on her seemed familiar to what Blake had known for so long. It could be seen in her glances, shifting this way and that, the unmistaken pressure that she must conform for others. Before, it had been a prudent choice to be strong and perennially positive; now, however, this expected appearance was a closing vice around her teenage freedoms.

Blake took her leader's place, moving closer to her girlfriend and placing what she hoped was a comforting hand upon her shoulder. "Yang," she assured, voice low and soft, "it's all right. What happened in Sierra is in the past now. We made mistakes, both you and me, and my mom had no reason to treat you the way she did. But that's just who she is. And making me sick…I don't care about that. Compared to what we go through every day at Beacon, vertigo doesn't seem all that important. We've argued, yes, and we moved a little too fast at times, but what healthy couple hasn't?"

Ruby and Weiss looked to each other for a moment, concern flashing across their faces, but Blake continued nevertheless. "We're not helpless, Yang. We can fix this. It may not be easy, and it's probably not going to be, but we can at least try, can't we?"

The blonde said nothing. Of course her answer would be yes; it was in her nature to move forwards and help those she cared about. Unfortunately, she was silent now, and this uncharacteristic response only told of a negative answer.

Blake sighed. "I forgive you. I'm not sure what there is to forgive, but I want you to know that whatever it is, it's okay. I've never thought lesser of you because of something you didn't know or couldn't do—those are what make you who you are. And I like who you are, Yang. I love you."

It was then that the limousine began its final turn, slowing down and pulling the team with it as the road changed from asphalt to dirt. A grieving look came over the blonde, something expressly irrational and altogether opposite what she held as regular belief. "D-" she started, ultimately stopping herself to commit in full. She then shuddered and simply let her words come naturally. "Don't bother. Just let me go. You'll be better off without me weighing you down."

In an instant, Blake was stunned.

"Yang!" Ruby gasped, disbelief making short work of her previous hope. "Please don't say stuff like that! It just isn't like you."

Something between a whimper and a growl shook the young blonde's form. She tried for a word and then a couple others, but the end result was Yang shaking her head and turning towards the approaching house. "I know. But that's why I have to say it. I'm not the same person I used to be, Ruby. I'm…weaker." Her gaze reluctantly trained on the glowing porch lights, closing in quickly.

As the car slowed to a final halt, Yang's muscles visibly tensed. She sat on the edge of her seat and ignored her sister's counterargument. Blake could only watch as the spectacle unfolded before her. She knew her partner was primed to run, but there was nothing she could possibly do to stop her. A fire was in Yang's eyes, and though it did indeed flicker in its vacuum of dissent, it continued to burn for those she loved—she would run because she loved her family.

Subconsciously, a hand reached out to take hers. The girl shuddered as fingers crawled between her own and locked. This was all Blake could do right now, unwitting as she was. For the briefest of happy moments, the blonde paused, hopefully reconsidering all she was to do and choosing instead to apologize and lead a fulfilling life; but when the limousine finally came to a complete stop before the sisters' home, Yang pried her fingers free and rushed to exit.

She was quick, fueled by an irrational need to distance herself from those she foresaw harming, and thus her actions were hasty and graceless. With two steps, she had freed herself from Blake's care and brushed past her sister to reach the cabin's door; and despite the lunges and cries of girls both red and white, Yang deafened herself willfully. She pulled and she pushed, and the soft patter of rain became a heavy hiss. Without looking back, the girl in gold all but leapt from the car to hurry elsewhere.

Blake followed immediately after, leaving behind Ruby and Weiss and as well the driver who had been tasked with letting them out. The storm caught her by surprise, eliciting a startled shiver as the natural cold contacted her skin. However, she did not mean to stand around. Yang had already climbed the porch steps to stand beside the door, fumbling through her pockets for a key and making a show of her deep distress.

But Blake was quick to chase. Her ears did not fold and her heels did not sink, for as she pushed ahead through the veritable wall of water, all she could think of was her partner's wellbeing.

"Yang!" she called, an angry shout to mask her fear. "Where are you going? All we want to do is talk!" This received no response, not even a glance. All the blonde could do was rummage through her pockets and lean against the door.

"Speak for yourself." As Blake reached the bottom of the porch, she found Weiss standing beside her, sheltered beneath Ruby's cloak as the young girl hid beneath her hood. "I think we're well past the point of conversation."

She was wrong. Yang could be reasoned with; all it took was the right wording and a bit of backbone. Blake growled and strode up the steps. "Yang!" she called again, scant feet from where the girl stood. "Listen to me. You haven't done anything wrong! Just tell us what you're thinking and…" Her speech was interrupted when Yang found her key at last. Something about this sight told the Faunus her efforts had been in vain—Yang meant to run from her, and it had been decided already. She continued, whispering, "And we'll figure something out."

In no time at all, the door was unlocked, thrown open, and left ajar as Yang rushed into the house, leaving the key bent in the lock. Erratically, she moved into the foyer and stopped to orient herself. She was in a rush but knew not where to go. And though Blake tried to follow her, stepping across the threshold to make some sort of amends, the blonde only moved further away.

With dripping hair and boots bemired, the two of black and yellow played their somber game of cat and mouse. From the foyer to the living room, from fear to reluctant despondency, and thereafter from the living room to the home theatre behind it, Blake followed her partner wherever she went, hoping for one curious glance to the world around her. But the lilac eyes were distant and distracted. Nothing caught Yang's attention but the ghosts she saw ahead. Fortunately, their chase came to a close with the theatre's natural dead end. So long as the Faunus stood where she did, there would be no escape from either the front door or the garage, and with Yang where she was, the opportunity for stable conversation presented itself.

"Yang," the Faunus sighed. Her tone was even and neutral, a purposeful difference from her prior agitation, though her disappointment was a noise unable to be contained. "Please, just let me help."

She was met with a wild look. The thoughts within Yang's mind must have reached a fever pitch, for she sent a red gaze at the girl who loved her most. However, this hue was not founded in anger and iridic manifestation but instead in fear and bloodshot reluctance. She was on the verge of crying. "Leave me alone, Blake. Just let me go."

"No. I can't do that. There's something wrong, and you and me need to fix it."

With a vehement shake of her head, the girl argued, "I'm the one who needs to be fixed. But I can't be. I'm just a dumb blonde who can't get it through her thick skull that she's not cut out for domestic life—that she's not cut out for you."

"What are you saying? Dumb? Not cut out for me? Yang, you're—"

"A huntress. That's all I am; that's all I ever will be. I'll never be a girlfriend, a mother, a friend; I'll just run off before any of that happens." She looked around the room, scanning the television and curtains to either side to find a nonexistent exit, but her regretful gaze found her partner again. "I'm bad at everything else I do. That game we played? I quit. That trip we went on? I made your mom hate me. I make fun of my sister and I'm insensitive towards you, and whenever I mess something up, I mess it up even more because I don't know how to fix it. And now you want to fix me? I can't be fixed, Blake, because I'm just one big mistake."

"What are you talking about?" These words could not have come from Yang. "You aren't a mistake. In fact, you've fixed more mistakes than I can remember. If it wasn't for you, I would have been chasing Torchwick while everyone else was at the dance—I could have gotten myself killed if not for you."

Yang closed her eyes. "Just stop it. You're lying to yourself."

How had she come to this? There had been a point in their friendship where Yang had avoided talking about her regretted past, but now she openly disgraced even her greatest endeavors. Within her mind, this relationship was reduced to a series of villainous mistakes and the sisterhood she had cherished and clung to now amounted to afterthoughts of her own misery. Likewise, Blake had begun to suspect that her presence had disrupted an already dysfunctional family and caused Yang to lose her balance.

However, where the two differed was in conviction. Blake knew for certain that her doubts were far from true, being that Weiss' third-party observations had noticed numerous benefits from their relationship, while Yang had no such confidante. Instead, she had led herself to believe her own nonexistent shortcomings were at fault.

"Maybe I am," Blake said confidently. "But so are you. If there's anyone to fault, it's the both of us. _We_ caused this, not you or me. Either one of us might have played a role in its beginning, but this pain is only kept alive because _we_ won't let it go."

A noise was suddenly made behind the Faunus, interrupting the heated stare she shared with Yang. Bootless and cloakless, Ruby and Weiss had arrived upon this civil attempt with not a drop of rain to be found upon either of their uneasy expressions. Between them, Weiss seemed the calmer, although this was likely a ploy to hide her actual sentiments from her partner, who shivered with her fear.

"She's not lying, Yang. You aren't a mistake!" Ruby rushed across the room in an attempt to hug her sister but stopped just as quickly upon seeing her take a step back. Tears bordered the blonde's vision, and all too soon the same effect found the girl in red. "If you're a mistake, then so am I! Dad's never around to help and uncle Qrow's not much better, but you're always there for me _and_ you always help. Yeah, we could probably do better about making our beds and stuff, but just because we're not good at some stuff doesn't mean we're not good!"

"But I ran off on your first day at Beacon. I ran off with friends who ditched me as soon as they found their teams. How's that fair to you?"

"Well…" Ruby sighed. She looked down, tried to find an answer, and sighed again. "It wasn't. I didn't know what to do after you left, and I was lost. But I probably needed that, to be honest, because if you didn't leave, I wouldn't've found Weiss…or Blake! Team RWBY wouldn't even be a thing if you just held my hand all day. You left me, yeah, and I didn't like it at first, but you've always known when to throw me in the deep end. And that's what makes you a great sister. You don't have to do things for me to teach me something."

The young girl tried a smile, mired in uncertainty. "And you're not weak. Yang, I don't know anybody stronger than you. You took what happened to mom better than dad ever did and you still wanted to be a huntress even after what happened. It's been just you and me for like ten years, and it's been awesome the entire time."

Seeing that Yang was still yet oppositional, Ruby stepped forwards, arms outstretched. Unfortunately, her efforts only pushed her sister further away.

"Honestly," Weiss wearily sighed. "Is there _anything_ that will convince you you're wrong?"

With an anticipatory wince, Ruby lowered her arms as Blake turned another glare on the heiress. "Weiss!" the young girl groused. "Not the time!"

"Isn't it, though? Your sister's in an upset, and no one is deigning to take responsibility for their own actions or the team's." Her expression softened towards her partner, if marginally, as she assured an ideal resolution. But although the heiress saw herself as the likely hero in this turmoil, Ruby understood as well as Blake did that the situation called for tact and empathy instead of what Weiss had to offer.

The young girl continued to watch her girlfriend warily. "Yang, you _are_ wrong. The only one here who thinks negatively of you is me, and if you could even begin to see Ruby or Blake as hating you, then you truly are out of touch with the situation."

Yang paused, scowling for a moment as she, ideally, considered her teammates' analyses, but, as had been expected, she shook her head. "What do you know? You weren't even there!"

"Nor would I have wanted to be. But I've stood beside you and Blake all summer, and I can say without a doubt that these assumptions you're making are nothing more than lies. It would take an _incredible_ effort to shrug Ruby off and I believe Blake is just as sick in the head as you are. Frankly, I doubt you'd have the ability to alienate one of them, let alone both, even if you tried.

"Perhaps you're not as smart as they say you are—I for one believe it—but to claim this as a detractor is just needless pessimism. Look around you and consider the company you hold. I've never met anyone more loyal than Ruby, and Blake spent a majority of her life remediating terrorists. You could set fire to an orphanage or strike me down or even both, and I'd hazard to guess they wouldn't bat an eye." The blonde's defenses had slackened, leaving only sheepish reverence as her senses fled from Weiss' rhetoric. Somehow this was working, this direct approach, and though Blake was hesitant of the speaker and her tone, this change in attitude would be welcomed.

"It's disgusting how well you fit in with them. Since the day we became a team, it was always myself against the three of you—you with your antics and schemes to frustrate and get under my skin. But if enmity isn't a bonding agent." She sent a glare to the other two girls in the room, an obvious lie to those who knew her but an airtight façade for the girl in yellow. "Even if you have changed, even if you are weaker, I doubt they care. Me? You haven't changed from what I can see, but that's coming from someone who cares little for your emotional wellbeing.

"In fact, I don't care what you think. What I do care about is how my friends are trying to help you and how you are running away from them." The heiress glowered at her sulking teammate, once again rousing Ruby's unease and pulling a teetering lilac gaze her way. "Really, you _haven't_ changed since the moment we met you. You're stubborn, impulsive, myopic, and reasoning with you is still like reasoning with a brick wall. But I'm not giving the wall nearly enough credit; a brick could never be as insecure as you are."

All at once, every shred of hope Blake had fell away. Weiss' glare was met with one of greater fervor as a scarlet heat bore into her, bloodshot and broken. Warmth filled the room quickly, bringing with it an unmistakable sheen to the concerned three as the lights in the room glowed brighter and brighter.

"_Insecure_? Just who do you think you are, princess?" Yang all but growled. "_You_ chose to stay the summer. I didn't ask you, Blake didn't ask you, and if I know anything about you, I doubt Ruby even asked you. But now that you're here, all you talk about is how we're _inconveniencing _you. Like my stuff matters to you. So, what's your game? What do you want out of this?"

Weiss kept her tone even but argued back nevertheless. "What _I _want out of this? Quiet. But it's not about—"

"Oh! It's not about you? _How noble_. You know, you might actually come off as a decent person if you didn't have your head so far up your—"

"Will you just listen for two seconds, you blubbering twit?"

Blake shut her eyes in agony. Weiss and Ruby were the only ones who could take care of this; they had been the only ones to affect her girlfriend so far. But she had also wanted to add something, perhaps defend Yang or support Weiss, but she knew neither what to say nor how to say it. Rather than siding with either, the girl in black chose to focus on the rains as best she could, escaping from the world around her and trying to find some sort of momentary peace which might lead her to a solution. Unfortunately, the strained ambiguity of the situation would come to a regrettable end with Weiss' continuance.

"Or are you just going to cry because you _still_ can't get over a little argument?"

"Weiss! Enough!"

The two of red and white turned to Blake, wide-eyed and uncertain of where this shout had come from. Yang turned to her partner, too, and though her scarlet hue did remain, the look she gave the Faunus was by no means a glare. The four simply stood there for a moment, silenced by the sudden command while Blake, herself, fought to maintain a threatening demeanor. Fortunately, no further argument arose from this unruly bunch, although Ruby did blink after a while to notice the heated glances Weiss and Yang were sending each other.

The young girl stepped between the furious two, a rare stern expression meeting them and demanding immediate cooperation. "Yang! Power down!" The blonde's gaze was just as defiant as the heiress'. "Yang!" she repeated and was then met with a full blast of heat. Nevertheless, Ruby glared at her sister, eyes brimming with tears and brows hunched low in barely concealed fear.

Suddenly, however, Yang noticed who she was directing her energy towards and frightfully reined in her aura. The room's temperature and lights fell rapidly alongside the colors in her eyes. Her anxious stance slumped, her contorted lips fell to a prior frown, and with a single, disappointed order, all the remaining fight in Yang evaporated.

Ruby then turned her scowl upon Weiss, opting for a mere shake of her head instead of the words which were by this point unnecessary. Breathlessly, the heiress offered an apology and received an honest, if not exasperated acceptance from her partner.

The girl in red did not seem happy in the least. One could never hope to play the role of arbitrator between a member of her own family and a significant other. But she was the team's leader, and it was her solemn duty to rise above her girlfriend and older sister to demand order despite their naturally lighthearted dynamic. Command during combat was one thing, but leadership, like Blake had long since known, was an ever-taxing demon. She could see it in Ruby's eyes: doubt in her decision's correctness, fear of what she had done to her relationships, and reluctance to move forwards. In this lattermost sense, she fought back tears to give Blake the chance to say something, the Faunus accepting with a nod.

As Blake glanced over at her partner, Ruby moved to her own, offering no words on the matter before clinging to Weiss' form and letting her tears fall against a jacketed shoulder. Though it was likely a heartwarming scene when Weiss hugged back, Blake could not watch; between the sentiments they shared and the words she needed to say, something this lachrymose would only slow her drive. She instead turned fully towards her partner and moved to stand before her, making absolutely certain Yang's gaze could not travel anywhere else.

"Yang?" she asked, standing not three feet away from the girl. The diffident glances she was given, although painful to watch, bade her speech. "Let's talk. Just you and me. No blame, no predictions, no speculation, just talking about what is. Is that all right?"

The taller girl's gaze flitted to the curtains beside the television, but Blake was quick to intercept. A hand was placed upon Yang's cold cheek to refocus her. They simply watched each other for a moment, saying nothing but hoping for something to change. After a pause, Yang sighed and nodded. "Yeah. All right."

"Good." Odd as it was, a smile tugged at Blake's lips. Of course, it never amounted to anything more than her loss of frown, but it felt good to make this sort of progress. It gave hope.

"Yang, I am happy with you," she promised. "All these injustices you think you've committed against me really don't hurt anymore. Our argument was unfortunate and it did hurt at the time, but we already resolved it and got back together. And my mom? She does like you; she told me in confidence. I have a feeling she _does_ trust you but won't actually say it yet because that's just how she is. And whatever happened between you and Weiss is between you and Weiss, not you and me.

"The only time you hurt me is when you're in pain. You have every right to feel the way you do, and the fact that you're feeling this way shows definite progress, but when you blame yourself for things that weren't your fault, it makes me feel like I'm doing something wrong." Blake brushed her hand against her partner's jaw, down her shoulder, across the retracted, cooling gauntlet, and into her waiting grip. "But I don't think I have been. And I know you haven't, either. Still, I have to know: are you happy with me, too?"

Unfortunately, Yang took a moment to consider this. She looked conflicted, as though her heart and mind were sending disparate messages which only muddled the matter further. But at last she did say "Yes" and sighed as she looked away.

Regardless of its enthusiasm, her answer was honest. And Blake had known this since their first argument—Yang loved her and fought only to keep the darkness away. "I believe you," the Faunus replied. "I believe the reason why you're frustrated has something to do with keeping me happy. And whatever the reason is, I'm grateful you care about me that much. But this frustration needs to stop. Do you agree with that?"

"I…I'm sorry, Blake." A pleading look was sent her partner's way, no tears to be found but instead the accompanying quaver. "I don't want it to be this way, but—"

"I know. It's hard. But it only gets harder when we push each other away. Sometimes you have to take the hand offered to you and sometimes you don't, but right now's one of those times when you do. This relationship isn't supposed to be one-sided, but it has been feeling that way as of late."

For a moment, the blonde's eyes widened in dismay, leading Blake to clarify, "I've felt as if you were the only one allowed to lend a hand. Whenever I offered my assistance, you turned it down and said everything would be all right. And I knew it wouldn't, but I trust you. You've never been one to ask for help, even when you're in pain; but right now, you're surrounded, and I want to lend a hand if you'll let me. That's what a relationship entails: a back-and-forth instead of the selfishness the others showed you." Blake paused. "Yang, are you happy with our relationship?"

"Yes." Her response came quickly. Whether this was meant to appease Blake with enthusiasm or leave no doubts about her feelings, it was doubtless Yang told the truth.

"And do you want to continue it?"

"What?"

"Am I overbearing? Am I…difficult? Would you have rather found someone more talkative and experienced to be your partner?"

"I-I don't know what you're trying to say."

"I have faults, too, Yang. You shouldn't hold me on a pedestal when I'm in just a rough a shape as you are. And I shouldn't do that to you, either. You don't think you're smart enough, I find myself conversationally inept. I think I'm a coward, you see yourself as weak. Whether or not any of that's true is negligible; by all means, it probably isn't, but we still bear the effects of it."

There was something in those lilac eyes that told of revelation. Yang had listened to her partner's shortcomings before, but it was only now that she likely compared them to her own. She had seen Blake as perfect just as Blake saw her the same, and although this did not remove her want of blame, some level of understanding was made possible.

"We're projecting these faults on to each other," Blake said. "Because you think you're not strong, you feel a need to maintain a smile and buy everything for me. You don't have to do any of that, but, all the same, I don't have to agree with every plan you conceive just to prove I'm brave. I like you for who you are, not because you're invincible or because you're well-read but because you're supportive and fun to be around. And I hope you like me for who I am, too."

"I do, Blake. You're, like, the other side of me, and I'm sorry if I—"

"No blame," the Faunus reminded. With a sigh, Yang acquiesced. "I know you do, which is why I'm asking this. The problem we're facing now is that you don't think I like you because of some obscure mistakes, when in truth I still do. I do still love you, Yang, just like Ruby does, and no amount of personal shortcoming will ever change that. But it's hard for us to get close to you. These days, it seems like we've done something terrible to earn your frustration, and even though we know that isn't true, we have no way to make sure.

"I want us to go on, but in order for that to happen, we need to speak to each other clearly. If something's wrong, don't say it's fine. I know how you feel about me and I know you want to do better, but I need to hear that you want this relationship to continue."

Perhaps this had not been the best way to word the argument. It was abundantly clear Yang did want to stay, but between the hurried glances she sent around the room and the avoidance of physical contact, Blake needed her to focus. Fortunately, this wording proved successful to some degree as it did result in Yang refocusing herself, if not in the anticipated way.

The girl nodded. "Yeah, I want us to stay together. Really, I do. It's just…all that's been going on, all this…nothingness…It's just not right. At first, I knew what was going on, but then I didn't. I can just see things turning out badly even though you say they won't, and…it hurts. It hurts knowing I'm doing something this wrong. But I want to stay with you, Blake. You're the best friend I've ever had, and I really mean that. But I don't wanna mess it up."

"I can't accept that as an excuse." It was harsh, but it needed to be said, Blake believed. "I consider you my best friend, too. I know I don't act like it, but you're invaluable to me, and if I just let you go, then what sort of friend would I be?"

It was then that a rustling noise sounded behind the Faunus. Ruby had pulled herself from Weiss and moved to stand beside her black-clad teammate. "What do you mean 'let her go?'" Her frightened gaze turned towards the blonde. "Yang?"

The temperature in the room began to steadily decline as Yang's eyes trained on her sister's horror. All notions of anger and insecurity fell away to wordless pleas from both girls. But as there was nothing left to possibly say, all Yang could do was internally cower and let her aura fluctuate in this yet unprecedented way. There was no heat to her form, no zeal in her eyes, only reciprocated fear which led to this inevitable chill.

Blake sighed. "She wanted to run. I don't know why or where, but she's been looking around the room for some kind of escape ever since we got back."

Ruby was floored. "What?" she yelped. "Yang! Please don't go! We wanna help you. Just tell us what's wrong!"

Even as the young girl grasped her sister's hand desperately, Yang did not react. In truth, Blake had wanted to be proven wrong in her observation and hear that her partner was willing to talk, but this expression proved undeniable guilt. She did mean to run. What had caused this idea or what her intermittent plans were meant little by this point. All that mattered was that she still wanted to run but had been caught prematurely.

Silently, the Faunus caught her partner's distant expression. She did not smile nor did she frown, instead bracing for the consequences of her own words. "Yang," she began, finding feeble lilac staring back at her. This had nearly stopped her efforts, but some level of responsibility needed to be taken lest the team be forever burdened. "If you want to leave, tell me. I do love you and I always will, but if you're uncomfortable, I will respect your decision. But if you don't want to leave, then don't. I know you better than I've known anyone else, and I'm almost certain you don't want to leave; but at the same time, you intend to.

"You want to run because you think it will give me space. But it won't." Yang looked away, pulled her hand from Ruby's own, and took a troubling step backwards. In kind, Blake looked down to the floor between them. "If you run away now, it will only break us—you, me, Ruby, even Weiss. I still haven't lived down what happened in the White Fang, and even if my decision to leave might have been a good one, I think about it every day. And I don't want you to deal with that regret. Without you, I doubt I'd ever feel safe again. But if you really want to go, just…do me a favor and let me know first."

She had tried to keep her composure, but tears were unavoidable now. Rather than sobbing as she hitch in her throat wanted, however, Blake remained strong and faced her partner with steely convictions. Yang did not want to break up or leave her and Ruby alone, and even if Blake knew this with the all of her heart, it was uncertain if Yang believed it, herself. As such, the Faunus would fight to stay beside her and keep her home. The promise of fidelity she made was now a doctrine to base her arguments upon—no matter what Yang said or did, Blake would be there to take care of her.

The blonde closed her eyes as the temperature of the room dipped even further. "I don't want to," she said between grit teeth. "But I have to."

"No." Despite her best efforts, Blake's tears began their descent. "No, you don't have to."

"I do."

"You don't." No longer was the young Faunus stoic and unmoved. Her fists clenched in futile opposition as anger laced its way into her tone. "You never have to run."

"Yes," Yang suddenly shouted, "I do!"

With this, the temperature dropped exponentially, removing whatever warmth was left entirely. Ruby and Weiss staggered back while Blake and Yang stood apart, one with eyes clouded by tears and the other with eyes defiantly shut. It was painful, this cold, and no amount of wishful thinking could deny the all-over pinch was of Yang's manifestation. Nevertheless, Blake stood her ground against the nipping stillness and moved to contend their bond. However, the cold came in debilitating bursts as Yang began to speak first, body shivering at its own destruction.

"You don't get it, Blake. I'm not safe to be around." This was a half-truth in her mind, an obvious lie but a by now ingrained belief. "I'm not funny, I'm not strong; all of this is just an act. I'm a poor excuse for a sister, an even worse girlfriend, and if I don't even know who I am, how can you trust me with something like your life?"

"You're none of those things!"

"Then why are we like this?" Yang reopened her eyes and grimaced at her partner. "It's not because of you or Ruby, and even if Weiss started it, this isn't because of her. It's because of _me_—because I can't keep my emotions in check and because you guys suffer. Blake, I don't want to hold you back. You could be a whole lot smarter if you weren't stuck with someone as dumb as me. And if I would've given Ruby room to be herself, she would've made so many more friends."

The look in her eye screamed of the utmost confidence, but it was clear that this confidence was without base and that such an intensity proved only a vulnerability. There was no stifling effect, no limiting factor which Yang assumed. In fact, it was almost certain that Ruby would not have achieved this level of leadership and amicability without her sister's guidance. It became apparent this argument was yet another instance of projection; that the stresses of responsibility and resultant failure had taken their toll. And now that Yang had little energy left to offer these hindsight demons, this toll would be collected from her self-worth.

"Sometimes the only way to grow is to take the hard way. Sometimes protection just isn't good enough." She shook her head and looked down, resisting Blake's worry to again wallow. "I don't wanna hurt you guys anymore—I don't wanna argue with you or burn you or get you killed. I just want you to be happy. And safe. And if that means giving you room to grow, then I'll go."

Her voice cracked with this final word. Unfortunately, Blake heard every fluctuation in tone and felt disgusted at herself. Moreover, it was apparent Ruby and even Weiss felt similarly from their subdued, averted glances.

"But what about you?" asked Blake, clinging to whatever she could in order to keep this discussion alive. "You need to grow with us, Yang. We're a team. We're a _family_! You can't just break these bonds because you think you're a weak link. It's our job to help you improve, and we can't do that if you don't let us."

"No!" the blonde reluctantly spat. "You guys should be helping each other. This isn't about me." Behind the Faunus, Weiss swiftly took Ruby's hand and squeezed it. "You guys just don't need me anymore. You can find another—"

"But I need you!" Despite her frustration, Blake could not bear the next words coming out of her partner's mouth. "I promised I'd never leave you, and you promised the same to me. Doesn't that mean anything?"

Yang was silent for a moment. It did mean something, and Blake knew this well, but something far more powerful than honor drove the golden girl now. "I…I'm doing this because I love you, Blake. I need to go. I can't hurt you anymore, and if that means breaking our promise, then I'll do it."

She was scared, shivering with a hand clutching her bandaged wound.

"I don't want to, and I really can't stand it, but I have to. You deserve better than me—all of you. And I don't deserve you."

Her mind was not lost but confused. This rationale had a warpath to carve and would sever any and all ties for the uncited benefit of the world.

"I'd be better off somewhere else. I can't stay here with you. There are people out there that hurt every day, and if I stay here, they're only gonna hurt more."

Tears clouded her vision as her arm was gripped in her vice. A clap of thunder shook the house, bringing with it a marked increase to the surrounding cold and an unnoticeable dimness to the lights around them.

"Please," the adamant girl whimpered, "just let me go."

She was frightened, alone, and so firmly convinced by her own irrationality that foolhardy confidence had led her astray. The younger girl seemed so small now, so moved by her own lies that Blake could not help but see herself. With another crash, the lights flickered out, removing Ruby and Weiss from conscious existence and leaving not two but instead three standing in the center of the room.

"Sweetheart," Cole soothed, "it's all right. There's no need to get mad at yourself."

"Yes, there is!" Blake shouted in reply. "Faunus are out there getting killed _right now_ and there's nothing I can do about it! They need my help, dad. They need _me_."

"Blake, be reasonable. The White Fang has no use for girls your age." Her mother was the calmest of the three, keeping her composure easily despite her obvious frustration. Both she and Cole seemed almost youthful now—distressed, no doubt, but lacking in their grey hairs and crow's feet. "You'll be turned away as soon as you meet them, if not killed immediately. They want soldiers, not protestors."

"No, they don't!" The younger Blake waved a flyer in her hand. "They're a peace group! They want peace! _I_ want peace! They don't kill people, mom, and they don't kill kids."

The look Lilian gave her was quietly incredulous. How could this girl, so hesitant and mannered, come under this indoctrinating spell so quickly? She had seemingly always concerned herself with the differences between the moral right and wrong, but this adamancy had been a much more recent development, born of the persuasions and unrelated offense of the propaganda pages stacked high in her bedroom. "That isn't true," Lilian bluffed. "They don't care who wanders into their woods; they will hurt anyone who is unfit and unable to serve in their army."

"Then I'll get stronger—a-and they're not an army!" She was blind to her own irony, little fists balled over her flyer as she claimed pacifism. "I know they'll want me, mom. They'll take anybody they can get. Faunus out there are being hurt, and the White Fang needs a lot of people to help them. But they don't have a lot, so they need me!"

"Oh, Blake." Her father stepped forwards, kneeling before her and smiling softly. "They do, they really do, but just not right now. You're too young right now—you still have school and all your friends there."

She looked away in a huff. "I don't have friends."

"That's not very nice, Blake. What would those girls think if you just left them one day and didn't tell them where you're going? I think they'd be pretty sad, right?"

At such a young age and station, anger was a rare occurrence for the girl. However, she tried her hardest to scowl and seem aloof against her confusion. "They're too young to understand. I tried to tell them, but they didn't get it."

Cole laughed. "Well, I'm your dad, and I don't even get it. The White Fang's a grown-up club and they won't let you go to school. If you go there and join, how are you gonna grow up to help them?" He reached out with both hands and took Blake's own, relaxing her fists and visibly calming her expression. "They aren't going to be very nice if you're not a grown-up, sweetheart. They aren't even nice to me and mom. If you wanna join them when you're a little older and grown up, that's okay, but I think you're a little too young right now."

There was a moment of thankful consideration on Blake's part. As far as Lilian knew, her husband's words had caused an effect. Of course, she did not want her daughter to run away with a group of radicals at any point in her life, but this ultimatum seemed agreeable for the moment. However, as a shock of thunder boomed across the town of Sierra, a furious look consumed Blake's features.

She tore her hands from Cole's grasp. "No!" she screamed. "I don't care if I'm not a grown-up! They need me! Humans are hurting Faunus _every day_ and it's my duty to fight them! They're at war with us, dad, and we aren't fighting back. They locked us up in Menagerie, took away our rights, and hunt us down just because we're different! I gotta join them, dad. People are gonna get hurt if I don't."

A coarse sigh pulled the two from their one-sided conversation. "Times have changed, Blake," stated her mother. "The Faunus are indeed seen as mutants and beasts to humans, but this has nothing to do with the way they treat us now. We've integrated with them, found common ground. You don't have to look any further than your own friends at school. Do they ever hurt you? Do they ever call you names?"

Blake was silent to this, angry because she could not say yes.

"The only group left to claim humans war against us is the White Fang. They're the only people left who say we're being hunted. Society still has a long way to go, but the kingdoms are far past genocide." Lilian kept an even expression as she stared down her daughter. Regardless of what she could say, the end seemed to be inevitable, but perhaps parental naïveté could speak to a child's own. "If you join them, we will never have the chance to see each other again. If you join them, you will find they are the army we claim them to be and much, much more. And if you join them, you will find that you will either conform to their wanted genocide or be killed just like everyone else."

Something had been said to bring tears to the young girl's eyes. Although Blake was never one to cry, she did fight to shake off her emotion; though, it was doubtful this reaction came from the comment on separation. Realistically, she found offense in her mother's words just as she had found it in the organization's rhetoric. She was bound to them, enthralled by their motives, and no matter how irrational their purpose was, Blake found reason to fight those who dissented.

Cole leaned forwards and wrapped her in a hug. Perhaps only instinctually, she clung to him, too, and let her tears fall against his shoulder. "It's okay. It's okay," he assured. "I know you want to help them out, and that's very brave of you. But just wait a bit. You don't have to rush into anything like this yet, Blake. If you still wanna help them later—"

"I wanna help them now!" She squirmed in his grasp. "Just let me go! I wanna help them now!"

He held on tighter. "Blake, it's okay."

"No!" she screamed. "Let me go! I've gotta help them!"

Suddenly, the young girl pushed away, freeing herself from her father's grasp and taking a step back to glower at the two. There was a wild look in her eye, as though she saw her parents as enemies. It was doubtful she felt this way truly, but the White Fang had indeed sunk its claws into her.

"I've gotta join them 'cause it's what I wanna do. There's a lot of bad stuff that goes on around here, and nobody does anything about it but the White Fang. I wanna do something, mom. I wanna get rid of the bad people. But the only way I can do that is to help the White Fang. I don't care if they're mean to me, I've gotta help." With tears streaming down her face, she pleaded, "Please, just let me go."

Frantically, Blake grabbed her packed belongings and rushed past her parents. They tried to stop her on multiple occasions and in varying ways as they chased and pleaded with her out past their front lawn, but at last she would leave them, eluding their efforts and running off into the thunderous night without a tear to be shed.

"Just let me go," Yang begged. "I don't wanna hurt you anymore. I don't want to weigh you guys down."

They were two sides of the same deluded coin. No matter how factual or understanding those around them were, Blake and Yang would rely solely on themselves for moral guidance. This was cynicism in a most effacing form which defined their respective distances and wants, telling each other they were independent and strong, and thereby lying. Blake wanted permanence, Yang wanted stability, and although they had worked hard and found their success erstwhile this summer, now saw their contradicting fall. It was a contest of self-deprecation, and although Blake had since learned to not compete as to leave her past in the past, Yang insisted she was trouble.

But this was far from the truth. More than anyone else, Yang was a renewable source of stability. She could be brash, impulsive, crude in many ways, but she was consistent in these qualities and made every day fun and rewarding. This was why Blake fought to keep her. It seemed that through Yang, she would always achieve her goals and that Yang could likewise find emotional stability in her. Logically, it was clear why they should remain; however, logic was foregone by this point, leaving only raw emotion which Blake was charged to sift through.

With a sigh, she took back her prior arguments. This moment did not require appeasement or understanding but instead support—this was what Blake had not received from her parents. "Yang." She caught the blonde's lavender orbs. "I agree. I don't think you're holding me back, but it's obvious you're concerned. If you need to clear your mind and set things straight, go ahead. But before you do, just hear me out."

"What?" Ruby squeaked. "Blake, no! Why—"

Quietly, as not to draw any more attention away from the Faunus, Weiss shushed her partner, giving her a critical, if not reassuring look. Blake did have a plan, though it was likely to end poorly. Her tears had since dried and her stance had grown stronger, but even though these comparisons between the present and the past gave the young Faunus hope, Yang's life was still on the line. She had found her own façade to convince the frightened blonde, but beneath this mask was a just as urgent fear and weakness.

Yang did not say anything in reply. However, the temperature rose a negligible bit and these plaintive eyes continued to cry out for Blake. This was Yang's permission.

"I understand why you want to leave. Trust me, I've been in the same position more than a few times. But I'm not proud of it." Blake frowned at her partner, not reprimanding her or conveying a disappointed message but instead revealing her own thoughts on the matter. "I made a mistake by running. Leaving behind everything in Sierra was something I shouldn't have done. I had a couple friends, a promising education, and a home tucked away from all the world's hate.

"But I learned something by running to the White Fang—many things, actually. There are truths you'll learn about yourself when you're on your own, hard truths that you may never be able to swallow, but those won't compare to the knowledge that you left others' lives in your wake. My parents, the people under my command, and even you felt the effects of my fears. I learned a lot from my decision, and I don't regret my time with the White Fang, but if I could take back everything I did to everyone I've ever met, I would. Running is a mistake that taxes everyone around you, Yang. And if you want to go, you have to understand that Ruby, your dad, Beacon, and even Weiss will feel betrayed."

A breath caught in Yang's throat.

"But I'd be a hypocrite to condemn you for it," Blake continued, expression calm despite her trepidation. "Just know that if you choose to leave, I will follow you. Wherever you go, whatever you do, I'll follow you. That was our promise, and even if you feel you have to break it, I won't." Suddenly, the blonde's shock turned to confusion and this confusion to fear. "We're a team. If you weigh me down, I pick you up, and no matter what, you _will_ have my support."

Blake had expected relief, some sign of acceptance from her partner that everything would be all right. Unfortunately, Yang disagreed.

"No, just—No! You really don't get it, do you?" She turned away, pacing back to the far wall and running a tired hand through her hair. "I don't _want_ to do this—I mean, why would I want to leave you guys behind? It's just that…It's just that you guys _need_ me gone. There isn't anything else you need from me anymore; I can't teach Ruby anything and I can't back you up, Blake. You guys are good on your own. I'm…I'm gonna end up hurting you again if I can't shape up, and with the way things are looking, I'm not going to."

She turned back around in a mad rush, eyes burning a scarlet hue as the temperature dropped even further, bringing it to that prior level of despondent stillness. "This isn't about me, Blake! This isn't about you or Ruby or Weiss or anybody else. This is about _us_, all of _us_. You guys deserve better and I need to get gone, so that's why we have to break up!"

The three were suddenly stunned. "E-Excuse me?" Blake stammered, unsure of what she just heard.

Yang's eyes widened in instant regret, eyes falling from red to lilac, but swiftly they tightened to uphold her statement. "Yeah, that's right. We're done." Her voice was weak, manifestly crumbling with every syllable. "I'm just a bad influence on you, and you know it. I get you into trouble, get you hurt, get you sick, and the most I can do is say I'm sorry. But that's not good enough, not good enough for you."

The blonde lowered her head in shame. With this came the impossible dimming of the room's lights. The air had grown stiff and tense, bringing the Faunus' rapid breaths to instant frost as she stared agape at the girl before her. Without question, this was surely irrationality speaking on Yang's behalf. She cared too much for her partner to cut ties this abruptly. But as the girl in black reached out, caught between a hopeful nightmare and torrential reality, her girlfriend swatted her away.

"No! Just let it go, Blake! Just…Just let me go."

Ruby and Weiss were speechless, the latter simply holding on to the now inconsolable former as Ruby openly cried into her partner's jacket. With every sob from her sister and every shiver from her partner, Yang grew ever tenser.

What had been a slight dimming of the lights surrounding turned to intermittent flickers, lamps and consoles turning on and off as the energy of the room was quite literally pulled into her. As though she were a vacuum, all the warmth and sound in the room drained quickly and without a murmur as the house grew colder and movement slowed to a physically pained pace. The tears in Blake's eyes stung as they quickly froze over and the air in her lungs escaped entirely when at last the power went out.

In utter darkness, only Blake could watch the heaving, rasping form of Yang Xiao Long. Nothing had worked—not Weiss' strategy, not her parents' wisdom, not even her own affections—and now they had come to this, whatever this was. Had they broken up? Had they lost their strongest teammate? It appeared so, but Blake would not believe it—she simply could not! After all this time spent breaking out of her shell and learning to be a natural member of society, this was to be Blake's end? It was absurd, disgraceful, logically and morally wrong, yet here they both stood!

She was confused, aghast, and her stomach felt as if it were filled with lead as she whispered, "Y-Yang?"

The girl's eyes snapped open, revealing a sight which would thereafter haunt the Faunus' every decision. She was not met with the warm lilac she had come to love, not the furious reds which spoke of a furious life, but instead she found a deep, glowing, ruined blue which seemed to pierce her guilty heart. "Don't," said Yang sharply, meeting her partner's gaze and casting a soft light across the room. "Just don't."

These eyes were wintry and abhorrent, but even still, Blake was drawn to the sapphires she had only glimpsed before. There was a deep longing to them, a muffled cry for help hidden far beneath unbridled emotion. "Please," Blake whimpered, gasping for air as the room's energy continued to drain. "I love—"

"I know," Yang managed. "I know. I know. I know. But you just have to trust me. I'm not good for you. Any of you."

Out of the four members of Team RWBY, Yang was the only one unmoved by her cold. Ruby and Weiss were left to tremble in this atmosphere while Blake stood her ground bravely, ignoring the pain in her joints and the burning of her heart. However, although she was brave, she could not speak. All she could do was watch as Yang clenched her fists and primed her gauntlets, red shells sliding into each of the chambers.

"I've made a lot of bad mistakes, and I can't take any of them back. I…I ruined all of your lives. But without me here, maybe you'll grow up better."

She clenched her fists again, another couple red shells chambering. What she meant to do with them, Blake did not dare predict. Glowing blues flitted sporadically as it was made apparent that emotionality had taken over. This was and was not Yang, the true girl hidden behind the wall of smiles but a cruel mimicry of who she actually was. She clenched her fists again and yet another two reds were loaded.

"Don't forgive me. Don't think of me. Just let me go."

With a final clench, two icy blue shells were chambered in Ember Celica, and it was only then that Blake knew what was to come.

Yang gave one last glance at her teammates, lingering on her sister and now former girlfriend for a wanted few seconds before brushing past them with tears at the corners of her eyes. However, as much as Blake wanted to reach out and stop her, she found herself physically unable, arrested by the cold and enervated by Yang's walking well. The blonde seemed to fight against looking back, but as she pulled aside the curtain behind Blake and revealed a door to the raining night, her blue eyes gave a shamed apology. And when she opened this door and let in the muted sheets of rain, she shook her head and promptly abandoned her team.

Upon her exit, the lights of the room flickered back to life. But before Blake could even breathe again, she turned and bolted after her partner, stumbling across the theatre threshold and out into the storm.

In her panic, the Faunus' hearing was limited, leaving only the hissing rains and her own heavy breaths. But as she looked to her right, she saw clearly Yang's golden mane rushing down their current porch and her boots crashing on the patio below. "Yang!" she shouted. "Yang!" Despite her choked desperation and the volume which had easily overpowered the thrumming weather, Blake proved unable to stop her.

She continued to chase, sprinting across the remaining porch and leaping down to the patio as her lungs burned. However, she was forced to come to a stop when Yang turned a tearful eye on her and fired her weapons upon the grass, just before the tree line.

In a sudden, heartbreaking instant, the glacial blonde was sent rocketing into the air, her gifted ammunition severing this partnership in less than a second. She then fired again and then again as her height and speed increased with each wretched _pop_ until she soared alongside the lightning and at last from Team RWBY's vision.

"Yang!" Ruby screamed, dashing past the slowing Faunus in a flurry of petals. "Yang, wait!" Bootless and cloakless, she ran across the grass, intending to somehow catch her airborne sister, but she soon stumbled and choked and dropped tiredly to her knees before the forest. Just as quickly, her leadership guise fell away to a hateful wail as the _pop_s finally faded.

Blake could only stand there in shock. She had let Yang escape—she had let Yang make the same mistake she had. And it hurt. It burned every bone and moral of her being. Knowing that those shots and this flight could have been prevented by even greater bravery made her sick. She did not bother holding back her own sobs any longer, instead letting the tears in her eyes flow openly as she sniveled like the coward child she still was.

Yang was lost to them and Blake had broken their promise. There was no way she could follow her now, no possibility for reconnection. All she could do was stare in disbelieving awe as flashes of lightning illuminated the scorches beside Ruby.

Suddenly, the Faunus screamed, loudly and gutturally as she never had before and let emotion override every sensibility of her being. On instinct, she turned to the metal chair closest to her and kicked it, launching it into the central fireplace with a broken clatter. The same fate befell the chair right beside it and she continued to yell, growling until her voice turned hoarse and her only modes of expression were choked sobs and long-suppressed tears.

But her bleary eyes did fall on Ruby once again. Alone in the mudding grass, the young girl wept for her departed sister and deprived herself of the tenacity she once exhibited. It was at this point that Blake understood both she and her leader were mere children in the world and thus was the bond of their tenuous family. They did not know what to do, where to go, what to say. All they could do was cry when responsibilities reached an irreversible head. But they would not do it alone, she decided. They were as much a family as they ever were, and if Yang was no longer available to be the older sister, then Blake would bear her torch.

The young Faunus did not so much as try to hide her emotion as she dragged herself across the grass. Her hair was drenched, her ears clogged, and her breath had yet to return to her between Yang's singularity and her own gasping chokes. However, she moved for Yang's sake to kneel beside Ruby and hold her, sheltering the young girl from the rain and keeping her warm as best she could.

"Blake?" slurred Ruby, shaking like a leaf. "We have to go find her. We have to bring her back." The girl in black could offer no response. All she could do was help her leader to her feet and support her as they walked back to the house. "Please. We gotta! She's—She's all I have left, Blake. I need her—I can't do this again."

"I know," Blake whispered. "Me too."

As the thunder crashed around them and in frequent booms, only Blake's upper ears could flinch. Any lingering fears of burning factories or leadership failures were left to the wayside now that heartache took precedence. Yang was gone on a whim of self-destruction, leaving Ruby in her partner's inherited care. But neither the young girl crushing the Faunus' ribs nor the rain which battered them without end could distract Blake from Yang's flight.

How fast she had moved, how incredibly fast she had moved from the ground to the sky as if it had not been impossible. Blake could still see them, the haunting blue orbs, peering back at the girls they had each once been. And even as she and Ruby climbed the stairs to the porch, she could not bring herself to believe Yang was not joining them.

She was somewhere out there, braving the cold and trying to calm herself by herself. She was somewhere far, far away now, considering how many shots she had fired—Why had Weiss given those to her in the first place, anyway? It made no sense. Ammunition designed for escape? And at such a velocity? Yang could have gotten herself killed—she might well have gotten herself killed!

In lieu of closure, Blake found herself furious, a pointed scowl burning across her features as she shielded Ruby from the cold.

Weiss stood at the theatre's threshold, arms crossed and shivering as she avoided the encroaching rain. Occasionally, however, she would hazard to peer out, risking her hair to look for Ruby and Yang. But even the quiet concern evident in her features could not convince Blake she was harmless.

Ruby was helped through the door first and stopped upon reaching the dry warmth. Blake, on the other hand, immediately sent the heiress a reprimanding glare, long-fused temper having finally reached its end. She stepped forwards, knowing full well she tracked mud and defiled Yang's house because of this manipulative monster before her.

For a fraction of a second, the heiress' eyes widened in panic before she seemed to catch on to what was happening. Just as quickly, her right hand found its way to the handle of her blade as Blake lunged at her. That is, the Faunus had attempted to but found this plan thwarted by a spinning black glyph below her feet. Instead, she grit her teeth and reached for Gambol Shroud, wanting to do something rash in order to vent her frustrations, but again she found herself immobilized.

Weiss let out a relieved sigh as she gave her teammate a reproachful look. "What in the world has gotten into you?"

With no physical means left to attack the little snake, Blake resorted to shouting. "The shells!" she bellowed. "Why did you give her those shells?"

A snowy brow piqued in confusion. "Not for what she did, I can tell you that much." Despite this, Blake struggled against the glyph. Again, the heiress sighed. "They were a present, Blake. That was it. She liked to fly, so I gave her the means. But had I known she'd humiliate herself like this and run off with my card, I can guarantee you none of this would have happened."

The flame in the Faunus' eye flickered out; however, her distrust remained. "Then why aren't you crying? We just lost Yang!"

"Seriously? Do you expect me to cry over anyone, let alone her?"

"Well, you could at least show some empathy for once in your life!"

This received a challenge of a scoff. With one hand remaining fixed on her pommel and, consequently, with Blake still locked in this semblance stasis, Weiss moved away from the girl in black and looked down at her partner. Ruby had collapsed again, sitting broken against the nearest wall. Weiss had moved to shut the sliding door and now crouched beside the crying girl to run a hand through her hair.

"Don't get me wrong," she explained as Ruby pressed her tears to the presented palm. "Yang and I are hardly friends. I would gladly take the chance to be away from her for a week or two just so I could clear my mind. But do not assume I hold any form of contempt for her."

Her words were soft yet certain, forceful in a way which could not have been a lie. Had Blake the ability, she almost certainly would have hung her head in shame, letting her natural sadness wash away this fear.

"She was a part of this team. A part of this _four-person_ team. Do you realize what that means, Blake—from a purely utilitarian view?" The Faunus was silent. Weiss simply combed Ruby's hair, her other arm too preoccupied with the glyph's maintenance to aptly comfort the young girl. "We lost our hardest hitter. We lost our strongest asset. Without Yang, we have little room for error now because if any of us catches a glancing blow, it's almost certain we will be out of the fight. Now, explain to me how I benefit from her cowardice."

"I…I'm sorry."

"I hope so." The heiress then released her pommel and the glyph, allowing Blake to collapse upon her weak convictions as Ruby was picked up.

Despite the rain and mud and tears staining the young girl's blouse, Weiss hugged her regardless, letting her leader's final links to strength fall away to a childish cry. But as Blake sat there, crumpled in the middle of her home, she found herself unable to block out these wails. Whatever had happened, the team was now broken. Ruby was rightfully upset, Weiss had taken the roles of unemotional mediator and emotional counsel, Blake was at an utter loss for what was, and Yang was gone. What had gone wrong? What could have gone right?

As the Faunus stewed there in her fog of regret, a brief interruption was heard amid the sullen sounds. Ruby had choked up, restraining herself to mere sniffles as she pulled away from her girlfriend. She stood in the center of the room, shaking her head and clenching her fists while her teammates turned to regard her. Whether this was out of respect for her most recent loss or simply duty which came with their team, Blake did not know. However, she found herself silenced as Ruby began.

"Guys," she struggled, "what do we do now?"

Weiss took a composing breath and offered, "I'll call the academy in the morning. I doubt anyone's there at this hour. We'll see what we can do about finding Blake a replacement and—"

"No!" Ruby shook her head. "We're not replacing Yang. We've gotta go find her!"

"Ruby, she's gone." Tact was a long since forgotten concept. Now Weiss could only offer factual condolences. Unfortunately, the Faunus blanched at her confidence. "She left us on her own terms and made it clear she isn't coming back. And even if she did choose to return, I doubt we'd want to carry the baggage she'll bring with her."

"No. Out of the question. She's my sister. She's my sister, Weiss! If I was out there, I know she'd be looking for me—just like how she went looking for Blake. You don't know Yang. She wants to stay, she's just…"

"Hurt."

The two of red and white looked down at Blake, Ruby nodding. "And that's why we have to find her. She's still a part of our team and she always will be, no matter what. She'd never give up hunting—_ever_. And I know she wouldn't give up on me or Blake, either."

"But she's given up on herself." Ruby hung her head as an ember of opposition flickered in Blake's mind. "She is not the same Yang you or I know; she's volatile, deaf. If we go out and find her, assuming we would, what would stop her from running again? She's not a huntress anymore, she's not confident in herself, and I'd wager that if we keep pressing the issue in this current state, we would have to deal with a far more irrevocable situation."

It took Ruby a moment to process this, these definite points which could sway one's opinion, but upon looking to Blake and her staunch, tearful expression, Ruby was forced to disagree. "No. It's a three-to-one vote. We're gonna go out there and find Yang and bring her back because that's what a family does. She's my family and she's yours, and if you aren't on board with this, then that's treason."

Ruby glared at her partner, eliciting an acquiescing sigh. "Fine. Have it your way." The heiress collected herself in the face of this defeat, gracing her expression with evenness as she strode across the room to offer Blake a hand. "Might as well. You two were always good together, and I'd hate to inhibit something nice."

At first, this received a skeptic look from the collapsed girl, an underlying judgment that Weiss had indeed meant to inhibit their team all during this summer. But her assistance was sincere, and thus Blake took the proffered hand to pull herself upright. She turned to Weiss, receiving a level frown, then to Ruby, finding a motivated solemnity, before she nodded and stepped into their meeting.

"I'll see what I can do about arranging a search party," Weiss said. "We'll have to wait some time before filing a missing persons report, but I can make a few calls to get the search started ahead of time."

"But we don't even know where she went."

"East," Blake offered, earning two disbelieving looks. "She jumped over the trees beside the patio. The patio is on the east side of the house."

Ruby argued, "She could've changed directions, though, right?"

"No," Weiss said. "She wasn't thinking clearly, and I doubt she had the wherewithal to cover her tracks." She held her gaze on Blake. "She went to a place of habit. A sanctuary."

"Um, I'm not sure what's east of here, but…there's gotta be somewhere, right? The only places I know Yang went to whenever she was upset were her room and…well, I don't know what bar, but she went to one a couple times."

Throughout this summer, Blake and Yang had travelled to many places. There were the monuments in the city, the statues Yang had shown her on their tours; she could be at the beach or esplanade as she wallowed in the surf and storm; or perhaps she had returned to the city to hide in one of its many alleyways. There was also the bar Ruby mentioned, though there were likely multiple dives judging by the boasts Yang had made, but these were marked off simply due to her current state—she was self-destructive, not outright destructive, and never meant to harm the lives of others.

This left a locale that was isolated, historically significant, and a sanctuary to the east.

Yang was out there somewhere, alone and in the dark. Blake did not believe anymore that she had meant to escape by destroying their relationship, and now that her team was committed to this searching effort, she felt strong again.

Although the list of possible sanctuaries was long and largely undefined, Blake somehow knew with the utmost certainty where Yang had hidden herself. Perhaps it was this exclusive knowledge which gave her strength or perhaps it was the hope that Yang would return to her safe, but whatever the case, the prior fear and tears in the Faunus' eyes disappeared for a look of ready determination.

"Weiss, how long will it take your driver to get here?" she asked.

The heiress gave her a placating look, disbelieving in a way but altogether meaningless to what was on the line. "Forty minutes, give or take. I don't know where he is in traffic or if he's returned, but—"

"Not good enough. Ruby, where does Yang keep her keys?"

"You mean the house keys? I think she kinda broke the spare."

Blake shook her head. "Bumblebee."

The young girl's eyes widened in relieved shock. "Wait. You know where she is?"

There was a moment of consideration wherein Blake's reply had been slated as "I think." However, her leader's hopeful expression pushed her to say, "Yes. And if I don't get to her soon, she might run again, this time with a clearer mind." She then looked to Weiss, who still seemed skeptical about this turn of events. "Don't call a search party. We don't need to turn this into a city-wide spectacle."

Surprisingly, the heiress nodded. "As you wish. However, if you don't turn up in the next hour or so…"

"Then make the calls. I'd rather it be me who talks her down than someone who doesn't know anything about her. She needs a friend right now, and I know that if any of your contacts came across her, they would turn away as soon as they saw her. Just let me have my chance, and if that doesn't work, make your calls."

Weiss accepted.

"All right, Blake. C'mon!" Ruby took the Faunus' hand and pulled, leading her out of the theatre and into the living room. "Where's Yang going? What's she doing there? Do you think she's all right? Blake, do you think she's gonna come home safe?" The three found their way into the kitchen, fluorescent lights flaring upon their entrance and the clocks of every reset appliance blinking after Yang's dour turn. Ruby released her teammate's hand and sped across the room, scrambling through a drawer and eventually pulling out a single key. She then tried a brave, albeit uncertain smile to energize the two before her. "All right. You ready, Blake?"

The group was struck silent. Blake looked down and away as Weiss stepped back so to remove herself from the impending conversation. Sadly, Ruby's smile fell.

"Blake?"

"Ruby, there are only two seats on the motorcycle. I have to go alone."

The young girl blinked. "Oh."

"I know you want to help, and trust me, you'll have the chance when Yang comes home, but I can't put you at risk. At the very least, she has to have someone to come back to, and if something bad happens on the road, I don't want to put us both in danger."

"O-Okay. But can you at least tell me where you're going?"

Blake shook her head. "I'm sorry. It's in your nature to care for Yang, and that's a very admirable trait to have, but I know you'd follow after me somehow and put your life at risk, too. And I know you're willing to, but that would only make Yang more upset—she'd get mad at me or Weiss for not keeping you home, and she might run off again." The girl in red looked down at the tiles below, resigning to her helpless position. "But I will bring her back. Remember that promise you made me make? The one about me having Yang's back?"

"You said you'd take care of her."

"Yeah. And that's what I'm doing now." Blake stepped forwards and crouched to meet Ruby at eye level. "I promise I'll bring Yang back. You've got my word. And as soon as she gets back, you'll have every opportunity in the world to take care of her. But right now, I need to go get her. Is that a fair trade?"

Her answer was found in the arms suddenly thrown around her neck. "Thank you, Blake," Ruby muttered into the Faunus' shoulder. "Thanks for being a great friend to my sister. You mean the world to her and—"

"I know," Blake soothed, rubbing her leader's back under Weiss' watchful eye. "And she loves you, too."

The two pulled apart, each with eyes reddened by tears. Ruby extended her hand, offering the key and its honeybee fob. As not to seem as though she were rushing, Blake took it gingerly, earning a slight smile from the young girl and an energy to save her sister. "You know how to drive that thing, right? I mean, you're not going to get hurt out there, are you?"

Blake smiled back to the best of her ability. "I'll be fine," she said. "Yang taught me how a couple weeks ago, so I think I'll make it." Unfortunately, this was a lie and a potentially catastrophic one at that. There had truthfully been no training as Yang had promised besides the process of how to turn the bike on. Still, this was what Ruby needed to hear.

A sniff and a nod later, Ruby moved to rejoin Weiss, taking her hand and standing beside her bravely. "Please bring her back, Blake. We're counting on you. If anyone can get through to her right now, it's gotta be you." She gave a weak smile. "Just come back together, all right?"

Blake nodded and looked at the heiress. She held a somewhat amused look, as though the situation were funny. Nevertheless, Blake turned a stern expression on her. "Make sure Ruby gets cleaned up. She was out there on the lawn and might have caught a cold."

"Oh, please. I know what I'm doing." The girl in white smirked as though nothing were wrong in the world, squeezing her partner's hand and joking honestly. "Shower by twelve, tea by twelve-thirty, and in bed by one. That is, if I can get her to fall asleep, which I'm almost certain she won't be up to." Blake did not laugh. "I'll keep her safe; don't worry. If she tries to run, I'll have my sword with me, and you've seen how effective that was."

There was a moment where an argument was considered, a gruff command to bring the heiress to order, but then Blake realized who she was talking to. These jokes were meant for Ruby, not her, and arguing would only hurt the young girl's growing mood. Blake faked a smirk in return. "And be sure to clean up, yourself. You're looking a little worse for wear after standing in the rain for that long."

"Believe me, I will. But don't think your mascara isn't running right now. At the very least, I'm not the one covered in muck and tears, so I think I'm fine, comparatively." Somehow, this had managed a withheld chuckle on the Faunus' part. Weiss shook her head. "Anyhow, just go get her. It wouldn't be a whole family without the mother figure, would it?"

Blake sent back a legitimate smirk before turning away and towards the adjacent hall. However, she was stopped once more. "Wait," the heiress sighed. The girl in black turned to the sight of Ruby and Weiss, calm against each other's company. "Be careful out there," she asked, smiling a genuine smile.

In true Belladonna fashion, the conversation ended exactly where it needed to, no more words having been said as the now tallest member of the team moved along the dark hall and towards the heavy door.

With not an ounce of hesitation to be found in her bearing, Blake turned the knob and entered the garage, finding the room dark and even quiet as the storm clattered against the metal panels. As her eyes adjusted to the shadows, Yang's bike came into view. An inanimate object though it was, Bumblebee seemed eager for the task ahead. It seemed ready, almost knowing what Blake had planned and seemingly wanting to get Yang back as it stood upright on its own volition. The Faunus clutched the key in her hand and focused on the obstacle before her. Every second she had spent riding behind her partner came back to her, every second of balance and warmth, the times where fear of a lack of control simply melted away with Yang's stable touch.

"All right, Blake," she assured herself. "Let's go get her."

Two helmets were pulled from the shelf on the back wall, one of black and the other of gold. Although Blake's use of the latter spawned almost entirely from its addition of necessary goggles, it held a greater sentimental value. This was Yang's, and even still the faint smell of lavender lingered to give the Faunus hope. As such, she donned her partner's helmet, taking care to press her ears down and fasten the chin strap correctly, and pulled the goggles over her eyes. Admittedly, they did not have the most comfortable fit on her, but between the raucous weather and winds, her own safety was just as important as Yang's. She moved to fit the second helmet on the bike's tail before mounting the vehicle, herself.

It felt strange to be alone here. Of course, it hurt knowing Yang was not present, but the sheer novelty of this solitude and the illegality of her current position threatened to undo the girl's shakable courage. Her experience in driving cars was limited to a handful of instances, and she had only driven alone once—never mind on a motorcycle. Though, Yang had given her a brief overview to work off of.

Blake shook her head and looked to the console before her, focusing. First came the ignition; she inserted the key and turned it against some expected tension, holding her motion at the apex to override Yang's security feature. When a reprimanding shock did not come, Blake sighed and ignited the engine. She then sighed again, amazed at somehow making it this far. Unfortunately, she had yet to actually drive.

But this did not matter, try as her fear might. Yang was out there somewhere, just waiting to be found. Ruby depended on her sister for want of unity in family and now she depended on the Faunus as well to act as a force to bring them all together. And that was the intent, to bring Yang home. Even if their romance was over, even if Yang would hold true to her words of separation, Blake would never cease to love her, whether as a friend or something more. This was no time to be a coward. This was no time for words. Only actions counted now as this absence proved sickeningly tangible.

With a press of a console button, the garage door began its ascent, metal groans mixing with the hiss of rain in droves. Blake's breaths had become rapid yet her heart beat strong, and as the door pulled away, she shifted Bumblebee into first gear.

The rain met her hard, instantly drenching the Faunus and fogging her goggles but not stopping her from pushing forwards. Rolling on its own, the bike crept onto the muddy road. However, Blake found herself startled—it was out of her control already, moving before she had been ready for it. But she composed herself. The console button was pressed again and the garage door shut, leaving only Blake, Bumblebee, the road ahead, and a blinding ignorance as to how she would get from point to point.

She gulped and pulled the throttle, easing the bike forwards as she found her balance and brought her legs up. This was how Yang did it, right? She pulled again and moved a little faster, leaving the driveway for the outbound road. Fortunately, this seemed to defog her goggles somehow and her balance seemed to work better than anticipated. As such, she hastily shifted into second gear and sped up, passing by the bordering trees and nearing the main road at a savior's speed. She felt confident in this way, actually smiling at the thought that Yang could indeed be recovered.

But then she hit the road. At this speed and on such an unfamiliar vehicle, pride got the better of Blake. As she rounded the corner, intending to turn towards the highway, the concept of breaking had not occurred to her. This led to a brazen attempt at leaning into the turn upon the slicked asphalt, and it did not end well.

Before she knew what was happening, Bumblebee gave out from beneath her, its wheels slipping at this angle and tipping its body all the way over. In quick succession, Blake caught herself bracing. By this point, all she could do was fall as the bike fell with her, crashing against the pavement and skittering into the oncoming lane. Strangely, even though Blake knew she would come out of this injured in some unforeseen way, she did not feel a thing and simply slid across the road with her partner's bike.

When they finally came to a halt, all the Faunus could do was breathe in gasps as she stared up at the falling raindrops, pattering against her lenses.

Nothing hurt, which could be either a good or bad sign, but she could fortunately feel and move all her limbs. Of course, there was a bike lying on top of her leg, but at least it had turned itself off and the storm had shooed away any possible traffic. All things considered, this was hardly the low point of tonight. With an exasperated groan, Blake lifted the machine just high enough to pull her leg out, letting the metal crash back down as she looked herself over.

Nothing on her arms seemed wrong aside from a few clinging pebbles and her helmet still seemed intact; though, there was a rough patch in the paint where she had likely hit her head coming down. Unfortunately, she had not gone entirely unscathed. The side of her right legging was torn in multiple places, scratches scattered about the side with corresponding reds and blacks of stinging damage. However, as Blake stood up, she realized that these scratches were of only secondary importance, for as she put weight on her foot, her breath caught.

In that moment, she knew her ankle had been fractured, a testament to the unexpected nature of overzealousness. However, it should be said this would later be diagnosed as a simple sprain—a comparably painful injury nevertheless but as well a mistake which gave Blake the knowledge to drive safer and the tenacity to continue on.

Keeping the pressure on her healthy ankle, Blake lifted the bike upright without much effort and promptly mounted it again. Indeed her injuries still stung and she was also aware of her risk for infection, but neither seemed to slow her resolve. She could have broken both her legs in that crash and would have still crawled to her destination because that was what her love was. She and Yang were two parts of an equal whole, but as Yang prioritized Blake above herself, Blake prioritized Yang the same.

Quicker than before, Bumblebee's engine roared to life. There was not much in the way of hesitation or fear any longer, only a drive to succeed and an undeniable courage to press on. Even as the storm thundered around her, flashing its brilliant white lights above, Blake's eyes remained steadfast on her objective. Admittedly, she did shudder at the sounds, but she could not distress any further than this. Now was the time to be brave, to prove to Yang she was not a coward. Now was the time to fulfill Weiss' expectation, going to an impossible length to cross the divide singlehandedly. But even more than this, now was the time to keep a promise.

Blake pushed the bike into first gear, then to second, and only when she reached the freeway did she dare touch third. She knew where Yang was without a doubt in her mind, and she understood now that her own safe arrival was just as important. Although the drive was relatively slow on these vacant midnight streets, Blake pressed on surely, if not for her own impatience, then for Yang's safety.

* * *

The earth seemed to shake with the ceaseless grumbles above. Blake was fortunate to have not encountered lightning on her relatively spotless journey, but she had nonetheless found herself reminiscing intermittently, vision going back to that introductory storm every time.

While it is true that some level of courage was shown in the Faunus' perseverance, it cannot be said that her fears were in the past. Never truly a phobia, never entirely suppressed, this fear of the weather would always chew on the back of her mind. However, there was a certain trance she found in going after Yang. Rather than a distraction, which she admittedly wished for with her injured state, this determination acted as a motive worth sacrificing for—she would brave the storm readily if only for Yang. After all, the blonde had been her lone solace in these turbulent times, and now it was Blake's turn to bring her back.

Carefully, the Faunus slowed into the destination's parking lot, breaking easily at the low speed she maintained. As had been the case with every other place she passed, the area was abandoned. This gave her the opportunity to forgo the now obscured parking spots and simply stop beside the expected trail.

With a flick of a switch and the removal of Yang's key, Bumblebee shut off, leaving only the incessant plastic taps above Blake's ears. There was a certain tranquility to this arrival, this sound. Her leg did, of course, ache and there was the very real possibility of Yang not being here, but Blake had made it. Beside her was an inviting tree line, a simple row of oaks which gave way to a perimeter path surrounding the park of their relationship's onset. For the moment, however, Blake rested as she caught her breath. Wide-eyed and disoriented, she looked out at the shimmering pavement ahead, becoming thoroughly soaked by the storm and absently switching on the gyroscope.

But this would only last a moment. As soon as she realized the hardest part was over, her eyes refocused on the path beside her and her weight shifted to dismount. Yang was in this park, back in her childhood hideaway and cowering from herself, and Blake was sure of this. There was no way to be certain and she knew that a secondary escape was beyond her realm of knowledge, but somehow Blake knew. One foot touched the puddled ground, then the other, and before the eager girl could unlatch her helmet, she was reminded of her ankle. Although she did wince and quietly groan, she did not dare stop.

Her helmet was removed, goggles, too, and her supporting grip on the bike was relinquished so she could stand alone, painful though this was. Redemption was at her fingertips, and she would grit her teeth, trudge ahead, and ignore the thunder to catch it.

Her movements began as a hasty hobble, an attempt to ignore her needed limp, but this soon became a desperate half-jog. With her right foot, she ambled; with her left, she ran. By no means was it the most comfortable means of locomotion, but it was efficient, and though she knew this movement would need to be eliminated by the time she reached Yang, it would remain an unabashed necessity to finding her. As such, the Faunus gripped the honeybee fob and hobbled on.

Although she had only visited this place once, the path to Yang's glade could never be forgotten. It had been such a beautiful day to hold her for the first time, to confess to her, to actually love her that every moment had been memorized to the smallest blade of grass. However, what had once been a park full of life and youthful excitement was nothing more than a shadow now, an impenetrable veil beyond the inner tree line which yearned to forebode. Despite what Blake thought of her surroundings, Yang was at the end of it all, and this was reason enough to ignore the darkness.

But pride soon found her in another difficult spot. The path around the park was completely visible for the young Faunus, being that the light from the parking lot was present throughout, but upon reaching the old, forgotten fork and the tunnel of leaves beyond, light became a sudden issue. Faunus could see in the dark as well as a real cat could, but not in this total darkness. Moreover, the girl's sight was strained between her anxiety to see Yang again and the physical pain of her progress. The forest she entered unfortunately tested all three, but she kept her head regardless by thoughts of her frightened partner.

The canopy acted as a roof, and as the Faunus found refuge beneath it, her traits came into use. Without the rain pounding against her upper ears, Blake could hear again. For the most part, the forest was quiet, allowing her mind to wander in this void of silence and sightlessness, focusing only on the storm above and the sound of her heels against the invisible path's concrete. In this latter way, she found some form of guidance.

As she went, her pace gradually quickened, reaching no more than an urgent jog at the thought of finding her girlfriend. Would Yang be mad at her? Would she be mad at Yang? What could they possibly say to keep what had happened from happening again? At this point, it was all pure speculation, but this proved easier to manage than an actual encounter—there was the probability for mistakes there, room to choose anger over sensibility. However, these thoughts were soon interrupted by an enthusing sound on the wind.

Even with ears on edge, the distant _thump_s seemed almost nonexistent. However, Blake heard them faintly and pushed herself to move faster. There was no other person in her mind who could have caused them. As the Faunus rushed ahead, these heavy _thump_s grew louder and were soon accompanied by tinny _click_s which had to have come from Ember Celica. Blake wanted to smile, wanted to cry, but kept herself composed lest pride take the opportunity from her again.

Guided by the eager urge to find her partner, Blake reached the end of the murky tunnel. Now the _thump_s were clear and the _click_s sounded just like an empty chamber. For this, the Faunus broke a fleeting smile as she limped into the clearing.

From far beyond the surrounding trees, the city of Vale had tinted its sky a dolorous red, giving Blake just enough light to see what was wrong. The central pond shifted in the wind, its natural serenity flooded by the surrounding chaos. This left the marble bench before it—that memorable spot where the summer truly began—wet and, surprisingly, broken in two. Something had fractured this timeless relic, and Blake was certain who, for as her now worried gaze moved upwards, she witnessed the source of the distant noises and knew the rage which could destroy oneself.

Yang stood before a hapless tree, fist-deep in a shotgun crater and head turned down at the roots she had frozen. She was crying, audibly weeping. The sound was so foreign and insecure for both parties, evocative of pain hitherto suppressed within Blake's heart, that it was hard to believe. But Blake would maintain her composure and merely listen, taking up her partner's mantle of strength to let Yang have her chance to cry.

Every few seconds, the shivering blonde would pull her fist back and try again, hitting the wood with a bloody hand as her gauntlet fired nothing, her belt of shells half buried in the mud. And every time, she would groan, a retching cry escaping her lips as her body shook violently. She looked so helpless, so afraid. Between the rain and her tears, no flame seemed to flicker within this once spirited fighter.

"Yang?" Blake called, voice hoarse but nonetheless clear.

A biting wind rushed the Faunus as the girl in question turned, glowing blues showing nothing but animalistic terror. Yang backed up against her tree, breathing heavily and halting her tears. "B-Blake…?" she whispered. Her back hit the trunk, thereby startling her and leading to an even wider area of frost.

Although the rain of the clearing had indeed been cold, it only worsened as the droplets froze. Just as a furious heat would send the Faunus to recoil, the ice upon her outstretched fingers caused her to unintentionally shy. Where this cold could come from, how it could exist within such a naturally warm figure, was largely distressing, but the fact that it was Yang who had flipped her personality to become this shivering, tearful wreck pushed her partner onwards. Cold or hot, red or blue, she was still Yang beneath this façade, and Yang was worth fighting for.

Blake stepped forwards, braving this auric disturbance. "Yang, please don't run." Unfortunately, this only caused the blonde's muscles to tense, her head turning as though she were to flee. "Wait. Please," she tried. "I just want to help you. I just want to talk."

"Go home, Blake!" She did not mean it; her words were a hiccup. "Just…go! You don't have to deal with me anymore."

"But I want to!" Again, the girl in black moved closer, forcing her ankle to relax as she grit her teeth through the process. "Yang, I need to! You're the most important person in my life, and you're my partner." Yang opened her mouth to object, but Blake took another step. "One way or the other, it's my job to take care of you and not let you leave."

"No, it's not! I quit, remember? I told you we're done. You don't have to worry about me anymore—you're free, Blake!"

"Free from what? From you?"

Another step could not be taken. It was too cold, too painful to press on; and even though Blake pushed with every fiber of her being, she could not. Her body would not allow it and forced her to cry. "I never want to be free of you. I want to be in love—I want to be normal! And if that means you'll keep pushing me away…I'll keep pushing back."

"Blake—"

"Just listen to what I'm saying! Please!" Tears fell in steady streams from both girls; however, only Blake bothered to retain some degree of composure. Yang was still outright with her emotions, breaking down openly and shedding her façades to show her partner what truly was. "I want to help you. In any way I can. I just want to see you feel better, Yang. That's all. We've been running in circles for almost a month now, and neither of us is telling the other what's wrong."

A guilty look crossed Yang's face, a sign of progress and a sign of anguish. This was the matter of their divide, the overlying principle which kept them from each other. "I just want to talk, Yang. I just want to figure something out. And, to be honest, I don't want you to go—those things I said after the argument were wrong. Just…give me a chance. I don't want us to run anymore."

By a small and almost insignificant degree, Yang's aura let up. The air was still uncomfortably brittle and stung the Faunus' scratched skin, but the rain no longer froze and instead washed away her collected dirt.

"Okay," Yang said, sniffling to mirror Blake's composure.

"You mean it?"

The blonde nodded. "Just…promise you'll understand."

Without a moment of hesitation, Blake promised, "Always."

There was a period of tensioned pause wherein the two simply looked at each other, breathing heavily and fighting for their respective wants. This was not a battle or a grander campaign, though the acts sure felt as such. But as time went on, Yang's aura gradually trickled to its natural medium, releasing the frost around her as those sapphire eyes shone sadly.

Blake was the first to speak. "I'm sorry. I apologize. I want you to understand that I'm here for you—not me; you. There wasn't anything that forced me to come here, nothing that burdened me, but I did come here on my own volition for you. You're in pain, so am I, and the only person I know who can make me feel better is you. And that's why I love you. Because you actually care.

"But I messed up. I rushed this summer. This relationship was something entirely new to me, and I didn't know how to handle it. I should've followed you and let you set the pace, but I didn't—_we_ didn't. Two days in and we were dating, a month in and we said 'I love you,' and a month after that I almost broke us up. No one does that, Yang. I was overzealous."

"It's fine…" For the first time in what felt like an eternity, a pang of warmth shot through and across the Faunus. "I-I think I needed to move that fast," Yang admitted. "It felt nice, like we were actually accomplishing something."

"Yeah. It did." Blake smiled weakly. "But I meant what I said. I do love you. Even if we rushed ourselves, that doesn't change the way I think about you."

The girl in yellow looked to the ground. "Me too."

Perhaps it was not best to smile after all. Blake shook her head and sighed. "Whatever's happening now, I believe it's a product of us rushing through this summer. We've been with each other almost every day, and not an hour goes by where I don't think of you. But I think that's unhealthy…somehow. It's not that I don't like being around you but that we can only be around each other for so long before something happens. To be perfectly honest, I think we're in a pretty good spot. From what I've read, other couples tend to get mad at each other if they spend too much time together. But us? I think we turn the gun on ourselves to save each other. Neither's healthy, but at least we don't argue."

"But…you're not tired of me, right? I mean, you don't hate me?"

Blake looked to her partner, determination squared in her eyes. "Never. Weiss was right; you could commit the worst crime imaginable and I'd still find a way to redeem you." She smiled again, trying to help Yang along by inspiring emotion. "I'm not tired of you and I'm not mad at you. But I do think we need to slow down. Remember what you told me on our last day at Beacon? You said you invited me because you and Ruby had spent every summer together and that you were scared you'd get in each other's hair this time. It's like that, Yang. I don't hold anything against you, but I'm scared we're spoiling something amazing."

"I…I guess," Yang sighed, not entirely convinced. "But you know I'm not tired of you, right? I just have to leave so I can keep you safe."

"Yang, you have enough to worry about in life, and so do I. We're supposed to be the only people we can trust to help with that baggage. If you leave again, Ruby and I are just going to spend the rest of our lives worrying about you. And I know you'd do the same for us. So, if you want to find a way to make us safer, tell us and we'll make a compromise. Just don't run again. I might be able to keep up with you, but Ruby won't."

Another pause brought another wave of reluctant warmth. Yang leaned back against the tree, arms crossed as she quietly cradled her fist. "I don't wanna hurt you guys, but no matter what I do, I always seem to get in your way. Ruby with Weiss, you with your parents, I'm like a third wheel to everything. And it's never been that way before. Not before Beacon.

"I was never the best at anything and I never really wanted to be; all I ever wanted was to be good enough. Good enough for you, for Ruby, and even for Weiss. I wanna be a valuable part of the team, but I don't think I bring anything good to the table. Whenever you guys ask about me, I always find a way to skirt around the question because I don't think you really want to know. I mean, I know you do, but if I told you everything, you'd probably regret asking. So, I just have to be strong every day, keep my mouth shut, and be happy about it."

"You sound bitter."

Yang sighed. "Sorry."

"Don't be. It goes back to us rushing. If we do the same thing every day, eventually something's going to change, for better or worse. For you, you had to wear a façade every day. I know how it feels to suppress your emotions and internalize everything, but I can only imagine what it was like to do that voluntarily."

"It was…tough."

With this admission, the cold finally fell away. The glade did not warm any, as Yang was not her regular, welcoming self, but the summer storm was permitted its climate. Blake took this opportunity to close the distance between herself and her partner.

"I never was a good crier—never really had the chance to unless it snuck up on me. Those…façades I have to wear, I didn't just wear them for Ruby. After a while, I started to wear them for me. If I wanted to complain about something, I'd just suck it up; if I wanted to get sad over something, I'd just suck it up. I could get mad about all the things I wanted to because people see that as strong, but after a while, I could only do that. I could only be happy or mad.

"And I'm not an angry person, Blake. I don't like losing my cool. But I have to because it's the only way I can act—it's the only way people will take me seriously."

"But you could always come to me if you're feeling upset." Blake frowned. "I'm just like that, Yang. I have to lock everything up, too. But you once told me that if I ever needed someone to talk to, I could just go to you and vent. And the offer's always been open for you to do the same with me."

"I know. It's just…"

"You couldn't?"

Sheepishly, the blonde nodded. "I don't know how. There are times when I break down and let everything spill, but I can't vent outside of that. Blake, I'm an emotional mess-up. On one hand, I can't even admit to being weak; on the other, I can't let Ruby go. If I'm not happy, then I'm nothing. And that's not just what everybody else thinks, it's what I think, too."

"But it's not what I believe."

"You think I don't know that? That's why I'm running. I know you think I'm more than a happy-go-lucky party girl, but the thing is, I'm not even that. I'm nothing. And while you think I'm some sort of strong, insecure girl with a stunted childhood, all I'm doing is disappointing you."

"I promise you, you're not."

"I am!" Her words came as a choked cry, an outburst which she quickly contained. "Don't you get it? You think I'm one thing trying to be another thing, but I'm not any of them. You think I'm trying to be strong by not saying anything when I don't have anything to say. I never cry, I never complain, I never argue, and all that's done for me is mess with my head. Now I don't know what to do. I messed up. You wanted a relationship, I was happy to try it, and when I finally found what I was looking for with you, I just let it slip through my fingers." She hung her head and simply let her tears fall. "I love you, Blake, but I don't know how to do it."

It was nonsense. Irrational. Yang had been the one to introduce the concept of love to the Faunus and had always seemed the professional one of their relationship. Was this her past experience speaking? Was this just a lie to push Blake away? Never mind those; was what she said true? Maybe it was, but for the sake of their conversation, the answer was no.

"And neither do I," said Blake, "but that's never stopped us before." The final few feet between the partnership were quickly eliminated. As the Faunus stepped beneath the protection of Yang's tree, she took hold of the girl's hands, surely but with no small amount of fight. "I can't promise you a happily-ever-after and I know I'm not the most flirtatious person ever, but I do love you. And I'd do anything to keep you aware of that." Purposefully avoiding the gauntlets and bleeding knuckles, Blake squeezed her girlfriend's hands.

"Every second I'm with you, no matter if the situation's good or bad, I can always find strength. You may not think you're strong and I might be just as blind as you are, but the fact is that I feel something very real whenever I look at you." A quizzical gaze was brought up from the blonde. "So, you might not be as strong as everyone thinks you are, but you make me feel brave, invincible. I only drove out this far because I knew you needed my help. And frankly, I think I needed yours, too.

"I don't think I'm weak and I don't think you are, either. We _can_ be if we want to, just like how we can be strong if we force ourselves to be, but at the end of the day, we're just people with good _and_ bad sides to us. I still think I'm a coward for running to the White Fang and doing the things I did, but, Yang, I drove Bumblebee all the way out here just to find you!" She allowed herself a sadly amused smile as worry crept across Yang's features. "I know it was stupid of me and I probably could have called a cab, but I did it because I love you—I was brave for once because of you. That's the strength I was talking about, that strength you imbue in me.

"And I know I give you strength, too. The way you handled my parents was amazing, Yang, and I wouldn't have been able to talk to them without you. They would have just kept me home if they hadn't met you. And Weiss? The way you handled her when we came back was probably the best possible outcome we could have asked for. I know you think you went overboard, but if I know anyone who deserves that level of reprimand, it's her—otherwise, I doubt she'd have taken you seriously. In a lot of ways, I think you're incredibly strong. In fact, I look up to you.

"You're kind to everyone you meet—you at least give them the chance to prove their character before liking or loathing them—and you never give the time of day to those you don't care about. Me? I get mad at the White Fang at every chance I'm given. And when it comes to the people you _do_ care about, you never hold back. You chose to mother Ruby when she didn't have a father, fight Weiss when she didn't have a clue, and you gave me a place to turn to when I had nowhere else to run. You might not be the best at letting down your guard, but you at least helped me let down mine. And I owe you so much for that."

Yang's sobs had left her entirely. Her tears did still run and her body did still shake, but the blueness of her eyes seemed happier now, hopeful for the first time in a while. She gripped Blake's hands tighter, a noticeable warmth emanating from them, and appeared awestruck. It was not guaranteed that she was completely reassured, but she seemed ready.

"I love you, Yang. What you're feeling right now is the belief that no one cares for you like you care for them. And that's okay; a lot of people feel the same way. But you gave me a home. You gave me a friend and a girlfriend and—and a new life and a reason to live it. But I'd give that life for you—right now, I'm giving it to you—and I'll always be on your side, no matter what. I know that goes against the things I said about the White Fang and I know it's hypocritical of me, but I love you, Yang. You may have faults in your eyes and I certainly have some in mine, but to me, you're perfect just the way you are. Just please don't leave me again."

At last, the barriers between them were broken. Yang's hands detached from Blake's own and shot out to embrace her in a desperate hug, something torn between crushing and tender. On one part instinct and another relief, Blake reached out and did the same, pulling herself into Yang and Yang into herself.

A flurry of warmth fluttered out from the blonde's racing heart and a thankful sob from her lips as she buried herself in her partner's neck, whimpering a mantra of "Thank you. Thank you. Thank you."

Blake hushed her. It was all right, she had said. It was okay.

Regardless of their triumphant relief, the sobs of before came back with renewed passion upon the Faunus' shoulder. Yang was still structurally weak and relied on her partner for balance, but tears were fine now. The worst was over.

"Shh," Blake soothed. She ran a hand through the matted mess of hair. "Shh. I've got you. It's all right now."

Somehow, this only elicited an even greater choke, Yang's body shuddering at the bittersweet groan she released. In this time, Blake set to work on holding her close again, steadying her heaving back with one arm and combing through her wild mane with the other. She seemed so helpless yet so determined—as though she knew she had done wrong but vowed never to run again. At least, this was what Blake hoped, for both her own and Ruby's sakes. Nevertheless, Yang made it clear she wanted to be held now, and Blake would do whatever she could to make her feel welcomed.

They would stand there, beneath the swaying tree, for what felt like hours, both painful and thankful. Mostly the former, however, Blake could not help but grin. Yang was neither whole nor certain, but she was home, and if the childlike possessiveness in her pressure meant much, then it was reasonable to assume she meant to stay. The supposed fracture could wait; Yang was home.

"Thank you," Yang whimpered. "Thank you so much, kitten. You…Why didn't I meet you sooner?"

The Faunus smirked, finding perhaps untimely humor in this sad rhetoric. "I was off making my own mistakes. Destroying my childhood so you'd have something to fix."

The blonde coughed. In a way, it had almost sounded like a laugh. "We're just a hot mess together, huh?"

"Perhaps," Blake said. "But compared to how we were apart, I think that's a fair tradeoff."

"No kidding."

Yang pulled away, blue eyes brimming with tears and a wide smile sprawled across her lips. Her grip maintained and her warmth only grew, but there was still an insecurity she had yet to put forth. But this was no problem for Blake. With the hand tangled in her partner's mane, she pulled the lonely girl close and kissed her. There was no greater motive outside of relief and assurance, but it was deep enough to draw the blonde in and short enough to be a lifelong promise. When Blake pulled away, Yang's purple eyes returned to her, tearful and joyous.

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

"No matter where you go, no matter what you do, I'll always be at your side. I'll wait with you, stay with you until I can no longer fight. But even then, I'll never stop because you came to my aid when I needed you most. And now I'll return the favor at every chance I get. You have nothing to fear from me, nothing to hide. If you ever need a shoulder to cry on or a friend to laugh with, you'll find me there waiting, ready to earn back your smile. You're the best friend I've ever had, Yang, and the best friend I'm ever going to have. Thank you for giving me this chance and for letting me give you one, too."

A fire burned in the huntress' eyes, pendants of gold and promises of lilacs tempered both by strains of personal monsters. Nothing was perfect, nothing was guaranteed, but by due diligence and allegiant care, something fragile was made tough and something hidden set free. There were truths yet to hear and stones left to throw, but for the girls of yellow and black, this ceasefire came with the agreement to let these matters go. Better to purposefully idealize perfection than to lie to oneself by forcing and waiting for it. What they had now was happiness, not perfection, and in their pursuits of total complementation, only unnatural fissures had been brought forth.

Yang was happy and open to cry just as Blake was steady and unmoved by the storm. They lived for each other and for their own causes, selfishly pushing away their usual angsts for the combined rewards of selflessness. This was not a means of lowering themselves from who they once were—the girls respectively stoic and lighthearted—but instead the act of humanization, the supplementations of one's strengths upon the other's weaknesses. In this way, it was love—true love, young love, rushed love; the descriptors never mattered. The point was of themselves and of others, acceptance and commitment, and with this giving and taking of guards and vulnerabilities, Blake and Yang had reached a happy medium.

* * *

And that's that! I've waited over a year to write those scenes, you know? The wait wasn't fun and I have to admit this didn't quite live up to my over-glamorized expectations, but, man, what a ride. Between the blue-eyed Yang and Blake chasing after her for a change (On Yang's own bike, no less!), I had incredible fun. But you know what the best part is? No more angst. Up next, conclusions and fluff.

For the meantime, however, there are a few things I'd like to look back on. Just a heads-up, this author's note runs a little long.

First off, let me just say that this is, in fact, _still_ a work of fiction and by no means does it reflect the average intuitiveness of a heartbroken anybody. I've never ridden a motorcycle before, so I can't speak to their difficulty in operation, but if I had to guess, Blake would, realistically, have a much harder time than she did in this chapter considering her mental state, inexperience, road conditions, and the ongoing storm. That said, I thought it was a pretty cool moment of characterization, overcoming all those obstacles in order to bring Yang back.

Throughout this novel, there has been a continuous discussion of if Blake is the coward she regularly claims to be. As readers, we're supposed to assume she isn't because of her actions both here and in the series proper. However, the discussion of her cowardice is not targeted towards us so much as it is at her. We're just along for the ride in this respect. And although we can root for her and hope her teammates remove the doubts she holds, it's ultimately up to her to realize if she is or isn't a coward. In this chapter, she reaches a decision, though it isn't quite absolute. Because she proved able to ride Bumblebee despite her limited knowledge and the storm above, it was hard to argue against the concept of courage. In fact, she even admits to Yang that she was brave by the end of this chapter. But that doesn't mean she'll be looking for leadership positions anytime soon; simply, she feels more confident about herself, which was the goal of this overarching cowardice discussion.

However, I feel I should also say the biking scene felt a little bit…out of place. I say "a little bit" because there were indeed reasons to show the scene (Blake getting injured, the consequences of rushing, the faults in self-centered thinking), but…I don't know. It just felt somewhat tacked on. Maybe I'm being too critical of it, maybe I'm not, but even if I found a better way to implement the scene, I don't think I would actually do it. There's a definite reason for why it needs to stand out; I'm just not 100% on the manner in which it does.

Now, on to Yang. The idea of having her eyes flash blue as well as red has been hinted at since very early on in this novel. Most notably, if you remember the dream sequence in chapter ten, that's when the color was first mentioned by name. The idea was that because her eyes were naturally purple and because they turned red whenever she was upset, it was reasonable to assume blue was somewhere in the mix, too.

Concurrently, the idea that blue eyes mean cold was an answer to how the area around her became hot when her eyes turned red. Her emotions control her aura entirely, and her semblance, in this story's context, is the manipulation of energies. If she sees red, the area around her gets agitated, leading to hotter temperatures and brighter lights, and if she's feeling blue, the area gets cooler, lights start to dim, and movement is made difficult for everything in her vicinity. There's no scientific accuracy to this, but it was a logic I had fun with.

And in regards to how she's feeling now, after that ending, you'll have to wait for the next chapter. The answer's nothing too exciting and she does feel leagues better, but to what degree, I'm unable to say.

Next, there's the matter of the flashback and the return of Blake's parents. To those who worry about their overuse as original characters, don't worry; that scene was their send-off and will be the last we'll see of them for this story. Admittedly, their addition was a spur-of-the-moment improvisation which worked out surprisingly well. They weren't supposed to be in this chapter originally, but I needed something to break the monotony and something a little more express in its comparison of a younger Blake to present-day Yang. That, and I had planned on writing a separate short story of Blake's initial flight sometime in the future, but those plans fell through and this is what was left of them.

And in addition to that, I needed some way to parallel Yang's decision of abandonment to the other instances in her, Blake, and Ruby's lives. Being that we've actually met Lilian and Cole, it made the most sense to focus on Blake's initial abandonment rather than Summer's or that of Yang's biological mother. Neither Blake nor Yang has had an especially stable life, and one of the fundamental themes of _Valence_ has been that search for stability. In this way, I needed to prove how incredibly similar they are to one another in a climactic fashion before bringing them together for the finale. Lilian and Cole made the most sense because they had established characters, histories, and links to both girls. Hopefully, the flashback worked out all right.

Lastly, I'd like to touch on Ruby and Weiss to some extent. While there was some minor White Rose content here, I think the focus on them was of Ruby and Weiss as individuals rather than as a couple. More specifically, how they handled the situation and proved their merits.

In this chapter, I wanted to give them both shots at leadership. Although Ruby is, by title, the team's leader, that doesn't make Weiss any less competent in her organizational ability. There are moments where both of their leadership styles have advantages and failures, meaning the question of "Who was right?" can be left sort of ambiguous; however, it must be said that the younger's adamancy to keep morale high and maintain a chemic troop over the convenience of immediate replacement was a far more successful choice, especially in the grand scheme of military history. Without a doubt, Ruby was the one to hold her team together when the situation broke down, but one cannot disparage Weiss' earlier attempts at reason, either.

So, it can be said that chapter nineteen was the point at which Team RWBY was finally brought back together. They were torn apart first, of course, and this unity did not come without sacrifice, but I can tell you in absolute confidence that after the events of this chapter—after Yang returns home to Ruby's protective care—it will be much more difficult for any of them to run again. They've all changed over the course of this tale, grown closer and learned to appreciate each other—or, in the case of Weiss and Yang, tolerate. And this means they will watch out for each other. Whether this care will be in the form of a cohesive combat unit or the more idealized "family" concept Ruby kept pushing, time will tell. For the moment, however, I need to get working on the next chapter.

Thank you so much for reading. At any other station, I would have been frustrated at waiting as long as I did for this chapter, but writing for you has made it all worthwhile. It had something to do with the anticipation—the thoughts of finally writing these scenes and sharing them with you at long last. And I'm glad I wrote this story. Even if it's just fan fiction, there's something special about connecting with these characters and shaping a story that both you and I can smile about. So, thanks for giving me this opportunity to entertain. I wouldn't be having this much fun without you.

One chapter remains.

Stay safe and stay tuned.


	20. Chapter 20: Equinox

Well, this is it—the end. I can't say I'm happy about this fact so much as I am happy with the result, but this is how it must be. A story cannot go on forever.

Now, that dogma aside, I think I'm going to cry.

This story has been the culmination of a year and a half's worth of free time. Thousands of hours have been poured into its writing and thousands more into editing, but I can say without a doubt that these hours, each and every one of them, have been some of the most rewarding I've ever lived. Fan fiction is not a lucrative hobby—spending these hours here could, logically, be spent on original work. But the thing I've had to take into account is the emotional value this story holds, the drive which makes this novel a passion project. Is it worth my time? Is it worth the time I could be spending elsewhere? The answer is yes, absolutely.

So, this will be the final chapter of _Valence_. I consider nineteen to be "the end" in terms of drama, but this is where the bow is tied. This chapter is, admittedly, on the shorter side compared to those previous, but this is purposeful. Like chapter one, which was a mere 6,000 words before a 20,000 odyssey, the events here will be conclusory, tying up a few things, explaining a few others, and even punctuating this tale on a bit of a nostalgic note. Whatever the case, I'm happy with how this turned out—this chapter, this story, this whole fan fiction experience.

At the end of this chapter will be an author's note, like usual. However, this one is important and verbose. There will be gratitudes aplenty and reflections as is the norm, but there is something else located near the very end worth noting. I cannot hint at what it is here, but if you haven't read an author's note before and enjoy _Valence_ to any extent, I ask you to please read the final paragraphs at the end.

Here we go. _Valence_ chapter twenty. Thank you so much.

* * *

Chapter 20: Equinox

A withering breeze swept across the quiet steppe of Beacon Academy. Autumn had arrived just as quickly as summer, coming as something of a shock now that classes were back in session. But this was inevitable; it had always been. Blake understood from the moment she first stepped foot on the outbound airship there would be an inescapable end to her three months' respite. However, the events between then and now certainly left an impression upon her senses of importance and time.

The world felt different somehow, as though it had lost both its splendor and dullness. Rather than a disorienting nebula, the city of Vale seemed unsurprisingly placid. It was no longer the city-on-a-hill Blake had once dreamed about on this very cliff and it was certainly not the same corrupted fortress her propaganda claimed, but it did seem familiar, albeit largely still incomprehensible. What had once been a singular mass of light and energy now glittered as easily definable clusters—she could see the roads for what they were now, the skyscrapers and suburbs as distinguished districts between delineations of shadow.

And as the day's final light burned away on the furthest fringes of the horizon, the sun conceded with a final roar of magenta and orange. That was the bay, shining opposite this present cliff: the esplanade and its surf-shack turned romantic night out, the stores and shops now silenced by the annual return to cold. Closer still were the commercial and business districts, inspiring the megalith towers of neon and yellow and as well of memories of tours turned sour. Blake knew she had not explored every corner of this city, nor would she ever come close given the chance, but she could see certain patterns within this now scrutable sight. The luster of newness had worn off, making this once intimidating sprawl mellow to a place the Faunus could perhaps call home.

Home was a strange word. Its dictionary definition was naturally finite, denoting both a place of lasting sentimental value, greater than that of a house, and as well a sanctuary where all the world's troubles were simply locked out. However, the term was, in practice, much harder to place for a girl whose allegiances had shifted far too many times.

There was a shadow in the valley of trees, a pause between the lights and noise. A secluded ranch house, larger than expected but cozier than a new friend's offer had any right being, rested now after months of bustling activity and infrequent but ever-divisive storms. Somewhere in those shadows, away from the city proper, had been Blake's home. But was it still a home? Compared to the town she had been born and raised in or the shifting camps of her past decade, was this summer's bastion truly a home or just another residence deemed adequate?

The answer was obvious in some ways, difficult in others. If someone were to ask where Blake considered her present home to be, she would answer "Vale" easily and without afterthought. But her trip to Sierra had elicited an undeniably similar response. Her parents certainly factored into this novel sensation and she would admit a sense of nostalgia for those three long days, but even then, the mountain country did not seem all too permanent. It shifted in her vision, leaving only memories of parks and restaurants, fireworks and cab rides. All the dinners and lunches she had spent with her parents, all the conversations they had and the moments they shared seemed insignificant to her highlights—and if a home was not consistent in its effect, whether positive or negative, then was it truly a home?

This was her dilemma, albeit a relatively unimportant one since the entire argument was a distraction from something more pressing. But Blake supposed the question did need an answer.

No, Sierra was not her home, at least not anymore. However, she could not say Vale was, either, since she held no stake in its people or culture. There was indeed a link between the two and the familiar feelings they provided, but the young Faunus was still wary of articulating how. Despite the cliché which undoubtedly played a part in her hesitation, Blake did, admittedly, believe her home existed wherever Yang was. She did not blush at the notion or its inherent overuse, but she wanted to avoid depending on perfection to only find sorrow behind love's façade. Regardless, Yang was her solace just as she was Yang's, too, and this was unchanging.

Blake sighed, shaking her head. She was procrastinating. Although this current bench and vista were indeed alluring to her sense of adventure, she could only permit so much time for distraction. Closing her eyes, she took in the cool wind for one last moment, feeling it comb across her cheeks and through her raven hair and eventually stop against the jacket Yang had long ago given her. Blake had had her chance to rest already; now was the time for a return to form.

Laid open on her lap was a black, leather-bound book, dead-language calligraphy scrawled across its covers and pages upon pages of writings and drawings hidden between. The goal for tonight was to recount and summarize the important events of the past three months. She had tried earlier in June to do the same yet unfortunately fell to memories of storms and counter-protests. But this was different. Certainly, the train heists and propagations of her misguided decade had shaped her life quantifiably more, but this summer and all its rollercoaster emotions spurred an even greater effect in her recovery. This Faunus was where she wanted to be now—happy, at home, and in the company of earnest friends—and, as such, she wanted to document her experiences for posterity's sake.

Unfortunately, the cause of her initial distraction was the result of this documentation. Seven pages, front and back, had already been written tonight, but now she found herself uncertain. Up until the moment where her mother had called unexpectedly, her narrative had flowed unbidden, but she found herself eventually stuck on the subjects of Sierra, her parents, Yang's birthday, and her own confession of love. It was all too much to properly express in any concise fashion, lest her emotions be trivialized as some textbook reactions.

The young Faunus pulled her jacket closer and put her pencil back to paper.

"Sierra wasn't at all how I remembered it being," she wrote. "In a way, it was like the White Fang camp I fled to: foreign, unwelcoming. But I had Yang with me, and that proved enough. She led me through the town, through the park and the motions of recovery, similarly to how she showed me her home. Only a few landmarks sparked memories, but the place was largely a regret with my old home being the biggest of all."

She was getting nowhere. With descriptions like these, she was not getting to the point fast enough and was therefore wasting time and paper. Blake released her pencil and conceded to her writer's block while she planned a way around it.

Every action and event of this summer could be traced back to Yang. Her invitation had started it all, that offer for a change in pace, and from that innocent gesture they had found more than they could have ever expected. Love was decidedly key to their break's positive outcome, but this had only formed by their respective growth, which was the crux of Blake's writing woes.

Blake had grown stronger emotionally, less dependent on guilt for her own moral pursuits. She acted bravely for those around her now instead of those whose memories she could never appease, and because of this she was sure the term "coward" could no longer be applied. Yang, meanwhile, had softened her guard to be normal and vulnerable, though not in any way that made her less…well, Yang. At the very least, she could be sunny and invincible for Ruby's sake while simultaneously strengthen herself by admitting weakness to Blake. Together, they supplemented their shortcomings and buffered their edges, making them feel safe and whole. But this could not have been achieved without Yang's warmth as their initial catalyst.

With this in mind, Blake continued. "I was scared of it and what I'd left behind. I thought my mom would hate me like she did the White Fang and my dad would have grown quiet with my absence. This wasn't the case at all, but I was still scared. If ever there was a time when I was a coward, it was then, on that ride from Sierra's airport to their house. Yang looked after me, though, and made sure I followed through—I should have realized this was a sign of something more to her affections, but I couldn't keep my eyes off the road. Now I know what she was trying to teach me there:"

She paused. Admittedly, the supposed lesson was only a matter of drama on paper—a means of drawing the paragraph to a close. Still, the situation did hold some value and her mother did say there was a lesson to everything. She thought for a moment, furrowing her brows as her left foot unwittingly played with the brace around her right, before concluding, "It felt better by the end to have put the worries of the people I care about before my own."

A faint, prideful smile curled at the corners of Blake's lips. Perfect.

The young Faunus sat there atop the bench she had frequented in her freshman year, wrapped in her partner's lighter jacket and with a smile to her ease. Every so often, a sniffle would interrupt her renewed writing pace, but this was purposefully ignored. After her reckless triumph between Bumblebee and the storm, she found herself bruised, broken, but not entirely out of the fight. A boot was strapped around her sprained ankle, leaving her unfortunately absent for the first two weeks' sparring sessions, and she was dealing with the latter end of a cold from hours spent consoling her partner beneath torrential rains. It was funny, she thought; her last request to Weiss had been to keep Ruby from catching a cold, herself.

Although this was only their first night back at the academy and classes were to resume the next day, Blake could not help but feel left out. She was, of course, elated that everything turned out well with Yang, but the fact that she could not stand beside her in combat and test how much they had improved together was disheartening. But she would not lament—that went against her newest never-look-back mantra. Instead, she would continue to smile and sniffle and cough at the pages below as she wrote them over.

After she arrived at the park and its inner glade, after she consoled Yang and shook the blueness from her eyes, everything had turned out all right. They did, however, stand in the rain for a while and ended up moving the shattered bench to the shotgunned tree for Blake's benefit, but Yang had smiled. There was some expected distress from the blonde as to how Blake could have gotten herself killed, but she did sit beside the Faunus and sheltered her from the storm.

Fortunately, returning home proved far easier than leaving with Yang driving again. That had certainly been a relief. In spite of all they had gone through, all their arguments and misunderstandings, everything seemed normal when Blake wrapped her arms around Yang's waist and pressed against her matted hair. When she closed her eyes and ignored the throbbing in her foot, it could have easily been summer again and that ride could have been their first back after the initial confession. Yang was warm and fearless then—frowning, no doubt, but also welcoming of her girlfriend's presence. No matter how tenuous their relation still was, they were back together and seemed to fear future separation more than anything else.

As soon as they reentered through the garage door, Yang was immediately tackled by Ruby. The girl was so torn between cheering and tears that all she could do was hug her sister tight, and when Yang returned the favor with apology in mind, she almost crushed the poor leader. It was doubtful either minded.

Blake, meanwhile, had collapsed in a tired, satisfied heap. Almost immediately, Weiss moved to offer a hand, but this was declined—at that moment, all Blake wanted was to rest. The search party was called off, the team's mired clothes were laundered the next day, and the Faunus had been fortunate to curl up to Yang's side for the night. The rain continued to pound against the sisters' roof and even a few claps of thunder shook the walls and fixtures, but Blake knew she had never slept sounder. Something about their victory made her feel as though nothing could make them run again, and thus she felt assured to have Yang's trust for the closing week of their break.

Now they were back at Beacon, having arrived this afternoon. Weiss was vocal in her relief to finally get back to work; Ruby and Yang, not so much. Despite this, all four teammates showed equal parts melancholy and pride. Their summer's life had been a simple one for all intents and purposes, but they had, together, won against their demons. Their dorm room was the same as last year's, Team JNPR seemed to be in their usual high spirits, and their respective class schedules were picked up minutes after landing, largely to Weiss' request.

This left the rising freshmen to struggle and adapt to their initiating shock while the older classes wandered about and readjusted to their home for the next nine months. Ruby and Yang had gone off to the gym, partly to make up for their forgone regimens and partly to help Ruby train. No matter what the young girl argued, Yang was adamant about teaching her how to punch, ensuring the White Fang could never take advantage of her again. In actuality, however, this was meant to discourage any unwanted advances from Weiss, even if the heiress was not the type to be so forward. Currently, the girl in white was asleep and recovering from her purportedly common travel headaches, leaving her teammates to "Stay out."

Blake set her pencil down and smirked. For once, she felt no regret. Indeed, the summer had some low points, her parents were still only receiving one call from her per week, and Yang was not yet entirely healed, but the Faunus was eager to move on. The summer also had its high points, her parents were actually relieved to hear from her again, and Yang had returned to her flippant, energetic self.

All in all, this summer had been the best Blake could remember. By doing nothing and lounging around the sisters' house, the Faunus found a chance to breathe. Friendships were forged, alliances sealed, and her greatest worries about the White Fang were simply let go. But most importantly, she found Yang for who she really was—a partner, a girlfriend, an unconditional love, and a best friend to shield her from the storms. This was more than she could have ever asked for, and yet she had been brave enough to seize the opportunity. They were in love now, and Blake could not help but feel at home.

Her eyes danced gratefully across the glittering cityscape. Vale was not home so much as Yang was, but it was still an adventure to fondly admire. But as the Faunus watched the neon sea with an almost childlike enthusiasm, her bound ears perked to a noise far away.

"Can we bring some tape with us next time?" a distant voice squeaked. "My knuckles hurt, and I don't think I'm ready for bags that heavy."

"Sure! Just gotta find some, first. But, just so you know, dad never gave me tape when he taught me how to box, and look how I turned out!"

Blake could not help but grin. There was no one else at the school whose voice and gait were so blaringly confident as Yang's. For this, the girl in black quietly closed her journal and located a white envelope hidden behind its cover. She turned and squinted, trying to find her partner amid the darkness.

"Yeah, I'm looking. But I don't really see anything impressive."

Yang scoffed, happily if Blake's ears were working correctly. "You've been hanging out with Weiss too much. If I could get you to punch as hard as you spit…Man, you'd actually be good at fighting."

"Hey!" giggled Ruby. "I'm already good. You're just mad 'cause your weapons aren't as good as mine."

Two shadowy figures walked along the path from the gym, towels draped around their necks and a bag in the shorter's hands. The taller threw her hands up in faux admittance. "You got me there. But what'll happen if you don't have Crescent Rose with you? What if she breaks down in the middle of a fight? What'll happen if someone breaks her?"

Ruby gasped. "You take that back!"

"Hey, I'm just being careful. You gotta have a backup plan just in case something bad happens." As they got closer, Blake could see the taller shadow's head turn to the shorter. "Machines break all the time, Ruby, but you don't."

"Not all machines break, though! Like, do you ever think Bumblebee could break down?"

They stopped for a moment and the conversation paused. "Watch yourself," Yang warned. "Them's fightin' words." Another giggle was her only response, leading to her own laugh and grin.

Suddenly, the shadowy two stepped out from the marble arches and struck Blake blushing as the moon danced playfully across her girlfriend. Three months ago, the young Faunus would have never dared to entertain the thought of Yang being beautiful, keeping to reticence and her expected state of aloofness instead, but now the only adjective that came to mind was "angelic." The natural pallor of the blonde's bared skin seemed to glow by the waning umbral light and her wide smile and fervent lilac eyes seemed to wash away the possibilities of despondency or blue. The Faunus' breath caught and her heart began to flutter, and as those raring purple orbs locked with her amber own, Blake knew she was Yang's.

The blonde's gaze never departed from her partner's as she wrapped an arm around Ruby. "Hey, uh, do you think you could walk yourself back? I gotta go see—"

"Yeah, yeah. I know." Silver eyes joined her sister's as Ruby saw her teammate. "Lovebirds," she smirked, sending a quick, energetic wave to the girl on the bench.

"All right; now you're pushing it. Run on back to Weiss and annoy her instead, will ya?" A smile from the girl in red was met with a kiss to her forehead. "And make sure you get some sleep if I don't come back soon. You're gonna hurt in the morning, and I know Weiss'd kill me if you missed your first day back just because your hands ache."

"Don't worry. I'll go even if they do."

Yang simply looked at her for a moment, an almost motherly smile on her lips. She looked as though there were a compliment to give, but she let it go. "Good. Now go get showered and head off to bed. I'll be back soon."

Following a hug and exchange of the gym bag from the younger to the elder, Ruby walked away, smiling and with hands cradling her sore knuckles. Both Blake and Yang watched her for a moment, holding the same thoughts of protection, albeit to different degrees, and made sure she found the correct path back to their dormitory. Eventually, the young girl passed from their lines of sight, but the two still watched, hoping for a moment that everything would be all right. They then turned to each other.

The awestruck blush Blake had held vanished as the what-could-bes turned to what-weres. Yang was here now, stopped a couple dozen meters away and smiling tentatively. Ruby had not received a façade from her sister, but now neither did Blake. The blonde did not seem particular upset, but worry betrayed her calm. Despite this, her lips rose to a bashful smile upon seeing her partner's greeting expression. There was nothing to worry about, Blake quietly assured. All she wanted to do was talk.

With a shake of her head, Yang's smile brightened and she moved forward, slowly at first but soon enough giddily.

In response, Blake turned back to the city, hoping to recreate her past air of mystery and perhaps lighten the mood. No matter her intent, however, equanimity was impossible to achieve now that Yang was returning. With every blade of grass crunched beneath her sneakers, every plan and quip on the Faunus' mind fell away to pure excitement.

The natural warmth of the blonde fighter soon washed over this cliff-side view, seizing the cold altogether and rendering her gifted jacket a mere lavender-scented comfort. In no time at all, her rustling movements came to a halt directly behind her partner. The shorter girl craned her neck back and stared up into the cheerful smirk she had so dearly missed. It told of acceptance, of home—of a pain now passed and a recovery for which Yang was grateful. Blake returned the gentle expression and caught her girlfriend's eyes in an impromptu dance, soft amethyst unerringly locked with stable gold as they each searched for their summer's promise.

"You mind if I sit here?" Yang asked. "Could use the company right about now."

Blake simply held her there for a moment, staring and smirking. In part, this was meant as a teasing effort to delay the tacit inevitable, but this was only a marginal reason; in truth, she was awed. That this was no mirage, and that Yang was smiling again, whether a façade or not, was to be appreciated. The Faunus sniffled. "Sure, if you don't mind getting sick."

"Of you? Nah." As Blake rolled her eyes at the deflection, Yang moved around the side of the bench. In an almost imperceptible way, her gait was off—afflicted by a stutter of some sort—as she brought her bag to rest beside her. She sat down unceremoniously and flashed a grin Blake's way. "You'll get sick all over me, I'll get sweat all over you. Either way, it's all good."

With a wink, she bent over to the side and began to rummage through her belongings, putting her towel away and making sure everything was in order. Given the opportunity, Blake stared. Had it not been for the blonde's running shoes, she would have been wearing what passed as her pajamas, but the distinction hardly mattered. The svelte musculature of her back tensed beneath her haphazard ponytail, earning an appreciative blush from the Faunus whose gaze travelled lower, down the spine she had so often pressed against and eventually to where Yang undoubtedly wanted her to look. However, the moment Blake's eyes lowered to such a point, Yang sprang back to her regular posture, causing her partner to nervously do the same.

"Glad to see you're not completely turned off by the idea," Yang mused, looking out at the city. "Makes my job a _whole_ lot easier."

In her hands, she held a golden chain. At the center of this chain was an amber-stone pendant which soon came to rest upon her chest, its clasps clicking quietly behind her neck. Ever since Blake had given this to her, she had worn it nigh religiously, forgoing her patented scarf to show the world how much she was invested. But the blonde only looked into the cherished stone for a moment before turning to Blake.

Her gaze suddenly dropped to the distance between them as her apparent zeal cooled. She smiled hesitantly and maintained this distance, but the fact that she indeed smiled still comforted the Faunus. "Thanks, kitten," she whispered. "Thanks for…everything."

Blake's expression softened, too. No matter how confident Yang appeared, she carried an unmistakable guilt, and only now that she was alone with her sole confidante could it all be admitted. To some extent, this was reasonable, being that both she and Blake had done wrong by each other and acted poorly in their apologies. But the entire point of their summer had been to release these regrets and move on with their lives. Still, Yang's guilt continued to claw away at her confidence, and this was grossly unacceptable. Blake reached out and placed a hand atop her partner's two, feeling the sticky sheen of her recent workout and squeezing upon it.

Nothing further was said on the matter. Every conversation of or around what went wrong during their final days in Vale had already been exhausted. But this was fine; it was evident from her muscles' relaxation that Yang did not want to talk about it anyway.

As such, they simply sat there for a moment, silent because it felt right. Both girls' eyes trained almost longingly on the distant city as Blake's hand rested in warm company. Long strands of smoky clouds cut laterally across the darkened sky, shrouding an unfortunate couple constellations but leaving all the others to twinkle dully beside their airship counterparts. They were all so far away. With the school's relativistic barrier, this was true for just about everywhere, secluding the students from outside lives and the youthful freedom of family; but this was okay. Just so long as Blake could hold to Yang and brace with her against the autumnal cold, everything would be okay.

"It's…funny," Yang said quietly, earning her a curious look. "Normally, back-to-school time sucks, you know? Just knowing you're going back to something you don't really like drains the life out of you. But I think for the first time I'm…happy with how the summer went."

"You mean you have no regrets?"

"Blake, you know that isn't true." The two looked at each other. "You and I both have regrets—about a lot of stuff. And we say that we don't because…I don't know. It makes us feel better? Because it's easier than having people worry for you?" She shook her head. "I know you regret the White Fang. You might not regret the path they took you on or the things you learned, but I knew that you _really_ hated them as soon as we boarded that ship to Sierra. Heck, you were more scared of your parents than all that stuff before Beacon. And me? I'm still freaking out about what happened last week. I regret it—I mean, I'll admit that I acted like a total idiot. But that doesn't mean I can't be happy with how things turned out."

Blake smiled. Her partner's self-talk was improving. "And how did things turn out?"

"I got a second chance. Well, a third. Actually, maybe it was my forth…You know what, let's just say that I'm on my ninth life right now and put it at that." Yang grinned, pushing her topmost hand into the Faunus' lap. For some reason, her other hand remained stationary, clenched as a fist that seemed to contradict their easier mood. "You and me got another chance, and I think I learned not to waste it."

"So what you're saying is nothing has changed?"

Yang paused, considering something for a moment before raising her eyebrows impishly. "Well, you chasing after me in Bumblebee was, like, the coolest thing anyone's ever done for me. _And_ maybe I have the hots for you now because of it—not that I didn't before!"

The linked hands shifted to softly hit Yang on her thigh, Blake rolling her eyes all the while. "Not funny."

"Nah, it was totally funny! I mean, don't get me wrong; that night really was the scariest of my life, but you gotta be able to joke about these kinds of things. Otherwise, you're just putting yourself at a disadvantage way down the line."

She made sense, and Blake would admit this, but still. It just was not appropriate for the moment. "Perhaps we shouldn't joke about it quite yet. I'm still trying to sort myself out."

"Gotcha. A little humor's good in moderation, but you never wanna let the joke run away from you." Blake looked down and nodded, doing so to conceal her laughter that was just so malapropos. In kind, Yang's smile widened eagerly. "I'll give it a week," she conceded. "I missed that, by the way."

This raised a quizzical brow.

"That weird thing you do with your lips. You know, the look that isn't 'plotting how to kill you in your sleep' or 'plotting how to kill you with this book.'" Blake shook her head, her laughter becoming increasingly harder to contain. "To tell you the truth, part of the reason why I wasn't feeling too great last month was because I couldn't make you smile. I mean, I could, but only when you felt sorry for me. That just wasn't good enough."

"Well, for what it's worth, I can assure that you don't need to worry about that anymore. It seems your humor's come back in full, back to its usual subpar quality."

A bark of laughter escaped Yang's lips. "Subpar? Try god-awful. I mean seriously. That first joke didn't even make any sense, but we still laughed at it because I said 'run away.' We're both passengers on the S.S. _Sense of Humor_, and we just steered ourselves straight into an iceberg of unfunny."

"How poetic. But you do know the passengers of a ship don't usually steer?"

"Yeah, well that's just life, Blakey. Sometimes you don't get to choose your way and the ship just sails itself." She was given a flat, albeit amused look. "Also, I was trying to weasel my way out of that joke. It didn't make much sense, either."

Blake had missed this levity. She had missed this friendship. The last month felt almost like a black hole, pulling each and every point of light from a possible situation and never letting go until she fought against it. This mirth and positivity, whether of objective quality or not, was what Blake had fallen for in the first place, and it felt good to have it back.

"I'm glad you're back, Yang. I missed you so much."

For a moment, the blonde seemed confused, but this moment soon passed and the context was regained. This caused her to smile in warm understanding and close the gap between them with a fist still clenched in her lap. "Me too," she said. "This was really all I wanted—this, right here. And to think you had to chase me halfway across Vale to get it through my thick skull."

"And I'd do it all again. I hope you know that."

"Oh, I do. Trust me, I do. I just don't know whether to be concerned or impressed."

This situation hardly called for crying—neither girl was particularly downtrodden or joyous to the point of exaltation—but Blake found it incredibly convenient how well her cold masked a tearful sniff. She rested her head on her partner's shoulder, cheek pressed firmly against the warm skin. She felt as though restating her promise of fidelity would create a sense of closure, but her mind instead clung to silence. By saying nothing, she would disrupt nothing. As such, the silence would linger after all, letting the sick, injured, previously cold girl cuddle up to the sunny figure beside her, squeezing her fingers and relaxing under the lazy kisses her ears were given.

"Oh, right. I saw Jaune and Pyrrha today," Yang said, thankfully changing the subject. She waited a moment to see if Blake would respond, but all this yielded was a finger brushed against her thumb. "They still aren't together, if you'll believe it. Like, at first I thought Pyrrha was just covering the whole thing up because, you know, she's Pyrrha. But she seemed kinda frustrated at herself when I asked if she made a move.

"I was like, 'So, let me get this straight. You invited tall, blond, and clumsy to spend three months _in another country_ and _with your parents_, and you didn't even think about asking him out?' After that, she was all over the place. She said she couldn't even think about it because they were training so much—which I'm pretty sure was like two days out of every week. Then she said she's waiting for him to ask first because 'It's just how things are done.' Yeah, sure. Then she even tried to tell me how she didn't want a relationship because that'd only keep Jaune away from Weiss. I mean wow. Girl's got it _bad_."

There was a parallel to make here between Pyrrha's romantic shyness and Yang's relationship fears, but Blake did not have the heart to mention it. Instead, she moved the discussion away from why the two in Mistral could not act upon their emotions to something more uplifting. "It sounds like she really loves him, placing Jaune before herself. It's definitely self-effacing, but I know she means the best."

"For sure," Yang agreed. "But the thing I don't get is how she can get straight A's without cracking a book but still be denser than Ruby when it comes to people. Apparently, they spent a lot of time out on the beach since her parents' house is by the coast, and every time they were out there together, she saw Jaune looking the other way. I know you know what that means because you do it all the time. But guess who _doesn't_ get it?"

"Pyrrha."

"Bingo. She thought he was just checking up on her, blushing like crazy when I asked her about it. And, honestly, knowing him, that's probably all that was happening."

"Have you spoken to him yet?"

"You bet your ears I did! Blake, when you have a story as juicy as this, you keep on it. I am seriously _this_ close to seeing if Weiss has any hidden-camera type stuff on them because I can't tell if Jaune's lying or not. He said he really was making sure Pyrrha was okay, and he did seem confused when I asked him about it. But on the other hand, you've seen the way he looks at Weiss."

"I have," Blake said. "But have you? It's not like he's leering at her or doing anything explicitly crude. He's just…obsessed."

"Yeah, I guess. I mean, he isn't _actually_ checking her out or anything, so I will give him that, but he's always got that cartoon jaw-drop thing going on whenever she's around. You can't tell me he wasn't doing the exact same thing to a girl who looks like Pyrrha." Yang blinked. "Actually, you know what? You probably could. Maybe they're both clueless and I'm just overthinking this."

"One would hope."

"Yeah, it just sucks for them, you know? Being so close but so far. Still, if he's gonna keep chasing after Weiss and hurting Pyrrha's feelings, I can only hope Ruby lets him down hard."

"You know she won't."

"Yeah. She's a better person than me, that's for sure." Blake shifted, prepared to argue against this and preemptively soothe whatever worries Yang had, but the blonde simply shook her head. "Blake, I've been saying that for a long time, even before we met. There's a reason why she skipped ahead two grades and kept us all together."

Reluctantly, Blake let this go with a sigh. "Fine. But what about the rest of JNPR? Have you seen Ren and Nora yet?"

Yang perked up at this. "Oh, right! They were actually on the same flight as us."

This was returned with a look of surprise.

"Yeah, I guess they were staying in Vale, too. But on the other side of the city. Nora's grandma lives there and—"

"They went together?"

"Well, it sounded like Ren didn't have anywhere else to go. But apparently he's known Nora's grandma for as long as she has, so it was like a second home or something."

"And I assume you nosed into their romantic lives, too?"

Another laugh and kiss came as her response.

"Nah. I don't really care what they get up to—that's their business. The only reason why I pick on Jaune and Pyrrha is because, well, how could I not?" Blake nestled closer to her, by now forgetting about her journal and the note thereupon to instead focus on this fortunate return to form. And if Yang's reciprocated movements were anything to go by, she seemed just as willing to do the same. "But I'm not gonna force them into anything. After seeing what happened to Ruby when I joked about her, I think I'd be better of spectating for a while."

"And what exactly did happen to Ruby?"

"A fate worse than death, Blake. She's dating Weiss." This elicited a quiet giggle from the girl beside her. Yang smiled wider. "I never thought Ruby would be the type to go for someone like her. Honestly, I didn't think she'd even be into dating after she built Crescent Rose. But," she drawled, "I'll admit that she could do a whole lot worse than that spoiled princess. At least she's rich."

No matter how poorly Yang spoke of her frigid teammate, Blake understood the two held a mutual respect. This was, of course, hidden behind their purposeful "hatred" of one another, but it was audible in Yang's voice that she felt happy for her sister. Eventually, she would come to her senses and let Ruby be her own woman, dating Weiss how she wished and growing up in the process, but, for now, the blonde was content to hold on while she still could.

"They're going to be happy together, Yang. They need each other to grow."

Suddenly, the taller girl pulled away, looking confusedly at her now pillowless partner.

"You've helped Ruby a lot and will continue to do so in more ways than you could possibly imagine, but so will Weiss. Where you keep her sheltered, Weiss will show her how the world is. Where you teach her enthusiasm, Weiss will teach her tact." Fortunately, Yang did not seem upset. In fact, Blake thought she appeared somewhat intrigued. "And, likewise, Ruby will open more than a few doors for Weiss—melt her heart, be the hero, teach her what it's like to be an actual human being."

"And you know so much about being human."

"Considering how I spent nearly a decade hating humanity and learning to justify it? Yeah, I'd imagine I have a somewhat decent grasp. That, and this summer certainly helped gain a sense of it."

Yang simply looked at her for a moment, an unreadable glimmer to her eye. "You're adorable, you know that? It's like you always have to find the right answer for everything."

A faint heat burned across the young Faunus' cheeks. She could say as many affectionate assurances as her mind could dream up, but she still found herself baffled by Yang's.

However, she had grown since her early days of fluster, bolder and less inhibited. With the distance Yang had created between them and with the hand still locked in her own, the only reasonable assumption was that the blonde wanted her to follow. And though Blake's mind raced for some salient compliment to one-up Yang's, her body thought differently. The glimmer in her partner's eye, the smile at the corners of her lips, and the faint, partially lidded tiredness of her nighttime regimen sent a signal to the Faunus' better judgment.

No words would be spoken, no apologies, no compliments; instead she would prove herself brave as a means of both competition and gratitude for Yang's coming home.

Blake scooted across the bench and leaned in. Blonde brows raised in honest amusement as the quieter girl's lips pressed insistently against her own; but Yang never once minded. In fact, she leaned in just the same and pressed against the girl she loved, removing her hand from its present entwinement and re-entangling it in the hair behind the Faunus' bow. The embrace simply hung there for a moment, Blake admiring the sweet softness of her girlfriend's kiss and Yang chuckling lightly into the response she had been given. It was a thank-you and a welcome, a promise and an acceptance. And even if things had gone sour during their final month of vacation, there was nowhere else either girl wanted to be than somewhere with each other.

When they eventually moved apart, separating with a pining _pop_, they did not dare move away. Foreheads collided with an unmentioned _thump_ and the pairs of gold and lilac held firm in their tractive locks.

"You're pretty cute, yourself," Blake breathed at last, finding her words uncharacteristic but oddly adventurous, too. She wanted more. "Everything's always a game with you, but you just make it _so_ much fun to play."

Yang's laughter fell back to a simple, unbridled grin. "Oh, I could get used to this side of you. Kitten's got claws." To emphasize her point, the hand buried by Blake's ears began to scratch, earning an appreciative sigh and another quick kiss.

This was soon followed by the young Faunus shaking her head and freeing herself from the potentially addictive hold. However, as she sniffled and resumed her regular posture, the blonde followed, resting upon the junction between her girlfriend's neck and shoulder and hugging her tightly. "I love you, Blake," she whispered happily, snuggling closer. "I really lucked out with you as my partner. Thanks for rescuing me."

There had always been something to the girl's lavender scent which made Blake feel calm—calmer than usual, that is. The jacket she wore carried it, her bed back home smelled of it, and now, with the mane of flaxen hair tickling her chin and nose, she felt absolutely at ease. "You rescued me first," she admitted. "The crowds, the coffee shop, the trip to Sierra, and even from myself. I love you, too, Yang, because you never gave up. Everything we've done, everything we will do will be worth it for moments like these. You're worth everything I have to offer and so much more."

She felt her partner's aura rise, pushing out waves of blushing heat that made this first day of fall seem like those first memories of summer. They had come so far to achieve something so simplistically beautiful. A year ago, Blake would have never thought it possible, but now she held Yang Xiao Long without fear, alone and at the precipice of many.

Smoky clouds danced along the midnight sky, rolling in from the northern bay and passing by without a sound. Far away, household lights began to dim, heading in for the night and incenting their neighbors to do the same. Slowly, the suburbs of this momentous city winked out, casting shadows over the terminal forest areas and thereby shrouding any chance of spotting home. Similarly, the windows of the dormitory hall began to show signs of curfew preparation. Some students rushed about to finish their unpacking while others simply relaxed beside their missed friends and teammates. Beacon's ballroom was yet alive, however, with the sounds of unwittingly nervous hunters-to-be, but Blake knew all too well their stress would inevitably goad them into passing out. At the end of it all, she would be awake with Yang, both girls looking out at the cheery downtown and individually reminiscing upon the same moments.

Blake's hand moved on its own volition to hold her partner's back, straying unintentionally upwards and resting in the blonde's ponytail. The Faunus noticed this eventually and had half a mind to release the mane from its hair tie's capture, but she decided against. There was a difference between boldness and insensitivity; boldness was a kiss when the mood was just right, insensitivity was altering Yang's hair in any way. So, she settled on a compromise and sought to find how Yang liked it when her scalp was scratched.

The result was a laugh. "What? Do you want me to meow for you?" the taller girl joked. "Because, just so you know, I'm not above it!" Blake chose silence as her response. Certainly, she was glad Yang felt better and had indeed found this comment humorous, but silence just seemed appropriate. Yang, however, felt differently. "So," she playfully drawled, "what were you reading before I so _rudely_ interrupted you?"

With Yang's return to confidence came the rebirth of her characteristic tenacity. It had started earlier with Pyrrha's interrogation then likely moved on to Ruby and whatever reasons they had to speak, and now it was Blake's turn to take the brunt of her partner's long-restrained talkativeness. But conversation was just as fine as quiet, she supposed. "Perhaps it's a bit too late to question that, don't you think?"

"Nope!"

Blake smirked. "Please tell me you don't plan on giving that speech again."

"Nah. Just trying to show an interest in the things you like. You know, girlfriend stuff." With a hand wrapped around her partner's waist, she squeezed. "That, and I'm honestly interested. I mean, who goes outside just to read when they can barely walk?"

"Well, I wasn't exactly reading."

"Yeah, I know. You were writing in your diary. I'm talking about that letter."

On instinct, Blake tensed. "How do you know about my journal?" Regardless of her imminent intentions, this knowledge was surprising and regrettably premature. Perhaps Yang had spied on her? Perhaps she had even read it?

"Blake, I have a socially awkward little sister who likes to hide stuff from me. I know all about diaries—what they look like, where you'd stash them, the stuff you'd write in them. The moment I saw you pull out that fancy leather thing, I was pretty sure what it was. And with the way you take care of your other books, I know you'd _never_ write in them unless they were made to be written in." The hand in Yang's hair ceased its motions while the one atop the journal and letter clenched. This did not go unnoticed. "But don't worry. I haven't touched it. I haven't even read Ruby's!"

For some reason, this did not come as a reassurance. Indeed, the book held information which could place Blake at the scenes of far too many White Fang atrocities, giving easy evidence and testimony to prosecute her, but this incriminating factor was not her present concern. Rather, the lack of surprise disappointed her greatly. She sighed. "Yang, the letter's for you."

"Ooh! A love note? Blake, you shouldn't ha—"

"It's not that simple." In an instant, Yang was rendered silent. She pulled away to her partner's chagrin, sitting up and frowning concernedly. "What it really is…" the girl in black closed her eyes, "is a foreword."

"Wait. If this is gonna cause more problems between us—"

"It won't," corrected Blake. "At least, I hope not. This is a foreword to my journal. It's not a diary, it's not a collection of the boys I liked or the schoolwork I hated. This is a first-person recounting of my life leading up to this point. Every mission, every rally, every name and face of the people I lost are recorded here, bias and all. And I want you to have it, Yang. I want you to know everything about me so I can no longer hide anything from you. Secrets pushed us away in the first place, and I want to make sure that never happens again."

"Blake…"

"This is what I want. The White Fang's behind me now, and I never intend to go back, even if they reform. You probably won't like the things I've written, and I can almost guarantee you'll look at me differently afterwards, but it needs to be done. I have nothing left to fear, and neither should you."

This was not how she envisioned the gifting process going. Like that jubilant night in the middle of her Sierra visit, Blake expected some sort of awkwardness to accompany her offer, but she knew the end result would be acceptance. However, the blonde did not even look at the leather tome, making this whole situation uncomfortable. Nevertheless, Blake's steely gaze kept.

Yang reached up to scratch the back of her head, almost opening the fist she held but correcting herself quickly. "That's…brave of you, kitten. Really. I wish I had the guts to do something like that, but…" Her assurances trailed off. "I'm sorry. I can't take it."

The Faunus' brows knitted in confusion. "Why not?"

She was baring her soul to Yang, mimicking the way her partner did so in the park. If this was not the way to prevent future misunderstandings, then what else could she do? There was no doubt in her mind that the cause of all their ailments was somehow traceable to the White Fang's effect, and there were fears and tactics used in their separation that linked directly to those of the organization. But why was Yang declining this? Why was she not moving on?

"I told you I haven't even read Ruby's diary. And that's not because I haven't found it—she leaves it out so much I stopped putting it back on her shelf—it's that I don't want to read it. Those are her secrets, her thoughts. If she says something bad about me, let her. If she starts worshipping Weiss one day, I mean, I'd be a little concerned, but it's not like I'm gonna find out. The same thing goes for you. Don't get me wrong, I'm totally honored you trust me like that, but that's _your_ diary. Share some stories with me if you want, but don't make them mine."

For a moment, Blake felt hurt, as though her heart meant to shrivel inside her. But this ebbed with a quick kiss to her cheek. "Kitten, it's okay. I wanna learn all about you and unpack all that baggage you have to carry, but we don't have to rush. You said it yourself: the reason we were struggling was because we spent too much time together."

Blake looked down. This was true, but she hated to admit it.

"And don't worry. I'm not saying we're gonna spend less time together. I mean, we probably will now that classes are starting back up, but, Blake, I'm not kidding when I say you're my best friend. I'm gonna spend every free second I have with you because I like being around you. And even if we spent too much time together this summer, I don't regret any of it. All I'm saying is that I want you to tell me the stories, yourself. Not some book. That way, I get the info straight from the source." A wave of warmth radiated out from her as she grinned. "And I'll get to tell you some of my stories, too! We'll just take it easy."

An ember of relief flickered in the Faunus' mind. Whoever claimed Yang to be dull or brutish was categorically wrong—Weiss was wrong and even Yang was, too. She was using Blake's words against her and turning a negative situation positive. It was just like their earliest days at the academy, where the uncertain introvert was pulled into the wild misadventures of Yang and her younger sister. Now the blonde offered a place of respite to shield her girlfriend from the hectic world. The idea that their history defined them—where they had gone, whom they had met—now seemed laughable in a way, at least compared to Yang's confidence. They knew each other for who they were in this moment and who they always would be, and Blake loved her for looking past her history.

This ember began to glow and a smile came with it, for as Blake looked back to her partner, she no longer cared about her gift. That golden chain was more than enough to prove just how far they had come. "Okay," she agreed. "Just do me one favor."

With a faultless smirk, Yang nodded. "Anything."

"Take the letter. It will allude to a few events deeper in my journal, but," Blake blushed yet continued to smile back, "it also doubles as a love note."

"Well, that's a different story now." A soft glow spread across this cliff-side view, a fiery projection of an emotion far giddier than the blonde's façade expressed. "You know, you're the first person I've dated who's actually written me a love note, and, coming from you, I know it's gonna be something great. It's like middle school all over again, except this time I'm not all moody and ignorable."

"Ignorable, no. But moody?"

"Hey! What happened to 'too soon?'"

Blake nudged the girl with her shoulder. "You happened."

Suddenly, it was as though a miniature sun were burning into existence here upon the granite bench. Although Yang laughed and commented on what a terrible joke that was, her aura flared to illuminate each and every blade of dewy grass, making the two of black and gold shine just as bright as any tower on the horizon. Blake laughed with her, free of guilt and cold and wanting nothing more than to stay this way forever. Eventually, however, a warm spot would tap against her hand, then another and another. It was raining, but she did not much mind because Yang was here and always would be.

The Faunus pulled away for a moment, shedding her given jacket and draping it over her belongings. These leaden wisps above hardly scared her any longer; even the possibility of storms or thunder seemed insignificant. Right now, all she wanted to do was rest her head against Yang's, take in the summer's final rain, and revel in her normalcy. And this is what she did.

The shower came as nothing heavy nor cold, instead being of a welcomed warmth only added to by Yang's auric glee. Their laughter had died down, their positions had moved closer, and despite the doubtless trouble this water would cause their clothing and hair, neither girl's grins strayed from the other's. Blake could still see shadows of what had gone wrong, glowing sapphires which spat hateful propaganda to anyone who would listen, but she also saw a means of moving forward. She held nothing but love for the girl beside her and was certain Yang felt the same way. They were fortunate to have each other and took solace in the irony this situation presented, simply basking in the moment as the world fell to silence.

Blake's ears suddenly perked. She had heard something but was not sure what. With her eyes still trained on lavender orbs, she had missed Yang's fist moving outside her vision. However, what she did see was a slight dilation of her pupils, a microscopic frown, and an almost invisible shudder as Yang learned Blake was on to her. The Faunus' ears reacted again, this time noting a plainly audible _snap_. The girl in gold gave an obvious lie of a smile before pushing the little velvet box off the bench and into the hole of her gym bag.

"What was that?" the Faunus asked.

"Nothing." Yang shrugged, clearly trying to act nonchalant in spite of her partner's dubious awareness. "I'll tell you later. Now's just not the right time."

Blake let the matter go. Just as how her journal had been declined for a slower, more intimate approach, she understood that this particular secret would be unveiled in time. "All right," she accepted, wiping a matted bang to the side.

There was a moment of pause between the two, Blake turning her gaze up to the clouds and the harmless weather which came with them while Yang simply stared, transfixed upon her girlfriend. In a way, this felt nice, being admired as the center of attention. It made the Faunus feel almost human, as though she were just a run-of-the-mill person with a mere bow on her head. But she could also take pride in the fact that she was special to someone, that she was the genetic outlier in the grand scheme of life but be unquestioningly loved for it. She turned back to her partner, smiled softly, and placed a hand atop the now unclenched fist.

"Yang?" she asked, bringing the sunny girl back to reality. "Are you ready to head in?"

It seemed there was a lot going on in the girl's mind, judging by her initially glazed look that fell away upon the question. She nodded, grinning by way of lips and light. "Yeah, kitten. I'm beat. Long day, long summer; I just can't wait to get back into the swing of things."

"You and me both."

With this, the two stood, Blake taking extra precautions to keep her papers dry. She had planned on giving Yang her letter now, but she figured it would be safer to do so when they got back to their room. She wobbled for a moment, still not used to her boot and sneaker combination, but Yang quickly reached out to stabilize her, leaving only a dull ache in the Faunus' foot.

"Careful now," said Yang, slinging the strap of her bag across her shoulder. "Girlfriend or not, you're still my battle buddy, and I can't have you out of the fight for _another_ two weeks."

"It's fine. I'm actually feeling a lot better. I walked all the way out here, didn't I?"

"Maybe you did, maybe you didn't. Either way, I'm not letting you walk back."

"What—"

Before Blake could protest, Yang dipped down and swept her off her feet, catching her knees with one arm and her back with the other. The Faunus, her metal brace, her heavy tome, and an expression of sudden shock were lifted up without the slightest of hesitation. Yang was carrying her as she would either a baby or a bride, but Blake quashed this particular thought immediately. "Right. Now that I have your undivided attention, I can talk to you about that thing I meant to bring up in the first place."

A few seconds and blinks later, adjusting to this new lateral position, Blake eventually smirked. "We really have to work on your segues."

"Sure, but that comes after." The blonde waited a moment, watching for her partner's permission to go on before getting to the point. "So, homecoming's in two weeks. You wanna go?"

The answer was obvious but came after a small amount of pause. "Are you sure you want to go public with this? Ruby and Weiss are choosing to—"

"Ruby and Weiss are choosing to be quiet because of Weiss. And, surprisingly, I agree with her reasons. But we don't have to worry about reputations or collateral damage like she does. It's not like we're shouting our relationship from the top of a mountain or anything, we're just doing the same thing we've done all summer. Besides, I still owe you a dance."

They began to move away from the bench and vista, Yang carrying Blake back to the path with no effort whatsoever. This gave the Faunus some time to consider before at last she said, "Yeah, you do. All right, we'll go public. I can't wait to show you off to everyone."

"Reduced to arm candy," Yang tutted. "Blake, I thought you knew better than that."

Making sure her jacket was adequately wrapped around the journal, the girl in black nestled closer into her partner's neck. "Don't pretend you don't like it. You'll be doing the exact same thing to me."

"You bet I will! I'm gonna brag on you so hard the White Fang will be the least of your worries." And she meant it. For the first time in a long time, Yang was visibly exuberant about the prospect of another date.

"My hero," Blake quipped, voice even and flat.

"No, Blake," her partner said. Radiant warmth spilled across the rainy way, instantly drying all that was in their wake. "You're my hero." They laughed and later cried.

Yang leaned down and kissed her, admitting tears of long-suppressed joy. But when Blake closed her eyes and leaned up into the embrace, she smiled as those joyful droplets rolled across her cheeks. A gripping flutter took hold of her heart, hitching her breath and flushing her cheeks, as the Faunus melted into the warmth of her home.

It was her own little romance novel, this summer of memory. From her early days of insecurity, from the fear of crowds to the fear of herself, Blake had found honor in moving both forward and onward. The White Fang would never be entirely behind her with her parents again before her, and those she had failed and lost would never be forgotten so long as she had others to protect. But there was indeed levity in her near future. With Yang beside her and a surrogate family at her back, the crowds all seemed partible, the storms seemed quiet, and the sun shined always brighter. Whether or not she was victorious did not matter. She had won and had found safety in her world of hate.

The final lights of Beacon Academy's dormitory winked out. A seasonal wind gusted up the vertiginous slope, leaving no further warmth for the coming winter; but this was fine. It was not the summer which gave them their love but instead the closeness and camaraderie they each willingly shared. Through battles and quiet, future hardships and lazy lulls, their bonds would be tested and proven unyielding. For they had survived the tumult of Vale and Sierra, the rigors of their own clashing effacements, and still, in this end, they held to one another not for necessity but for comfort. It was incredible, this bond they shared, and no force on Remnant could ever tear them apart.

Pain and happiness, suffering and rage, death and life; powerful in their own rights and infinite in combination. Such was existence when modeled after the many versus the singular, but found often in the relative subatomic exchange between those singular who form the many. A paradox in this regard, love was the bond that made these individuals coalesce and divide, breaking the norms of their believed characters and spurring action when else there was quiet. A metered gaze and ebullient grin formed the opposition that so binds as valence shells allow. From this came pain, but so too happiness and in cyclopean amounts. There was suffering at the most fundamental level a psyche could admit and there was the rage to fight back and defend.

Fairytale endings march forward, ahead of the many and seen only by the individuals as faraway and achievable, yet impossible in singularity. Death would come—it came with their life—but the shell would be complete, guarded, unbreakable.

* * *

Yang,

If you're reading this, then I made the right decision. It's always been difficult for me to open up and admit I was wrong, but I'm glad I took the effort to do so. And I'm glad you did, too. Phrasing all of this, even with the eraser I didn't have before, just seems so daunting with all the things to thank you for and moments to remember, but I'll do my best—I owe you that much. I know you know all the clichéd one-liners and could probably spot them from a mile away, so I'll spare you from them and speak from my heart.

I picked you for a reason. You weren't the strongest. You weren't the smartest. You weren't the fastest and would have almost certainly got us caught, eventually. You were loud, energetic, devil-may-care, and there was always a soldier's bitterness behind every one of your jokes. You were never perfect, and I think you knew it, but that never stopped you from taking on the world all by yourself. I could relate.

The whole notion of us versus them, me versus you was never a healthy way of thinking, I don't believe, but we did so anyway because it was the only thing that made sense. You with Ruby against your father, me with the White Fang against my parents, we wanted to prove we could change someone's world. When I was a girl, nothing made sense. There was an extra set of ears on my head, but apparently it was accepted. There were accepted groups of people living out in the fringes, dying in droves, but apparently that was not my fight. Yang, I was angry; I made it my fight. Deluded, I campaigned another's warpath, stealing documents and propagating lies because it seemed conducive to greater change, until I pushed myself too far forward that the figurative bike fell from beneath me. And that was not the end of my fury, only the point at which it turned the other way.

When I first saw you with an Ursa at your back, I didn't see a human. You could have been a Faunus, and I would not have looked at you differently. You were in trouble, about to be killed, and in that instant of hesitation on the tree line, the past ten years seemed to disappear.

I'm glad I made that decision. Jumping out and committing to four years of, at the very least, forced friendship should have proved I was no longer a coward. And although I might not have believed it, myself, I proved it to you. Ever since, I've seen salvation in your eyes. The mere fact that you tolerated and found me appealing did wonders for my self-esteem. Of course, we do have our moments where separate corners will be needed, but can you believe it's been a year already?

With my journey to the White Fang and my separation from their cause and all the moments of shifting character between, I dare say this summer trumped them all in importance. Dating you—loving you—has meant more to me than all my mistakes combined. Even though it's only been three months, paling in comparison to the years of hatred I locked myself into, I can say with the utmost confidence that what we've done together has changed me more than anything else. I've grown because of you. I've matured, trended happier, lost innumerable inhibitions when it comes to conversation, and you even brought me into your family. You're stronger than the entire White Fang, I hope you know that.

So, why give this to you? We know each other well, our highs and our lows, and learn more every day because we really do care. This book is my life—my stories, my dreams, my fairytale aspirations—and I want you to have it. I could keep it bottled up inside me to fester and break free at some inopportune time, or I could let you have it now and give you the whole truth. Let nothing stand between us, and we'll only grow closer.

Something changed in me this summer. I might have opened up, conquered my fears, or disproved my cowardice, but those are mere byproducts to something much greater. I feel safe around you, within your tight hugs or with you in my own, and I wake up every day rested, as though I'm a new person. I'm happy, Yang. I'm happy with the way things are. It's like I've reached the end of a maze: tired, broken, but with enough courage to strike the Gordian knot. Maybe this is the distraction I first thought it was or maybe you truly have freed me, taking my past away and paving a new future I can always look forward to. Whatever it is, I'm happy.

You're an adventure, Yang, better than all the ones I've read. And the mere thought of being near you and sharing in where this adventure will take us gives me goosebumps. I want you to have this book so we can move on and experience the lives we've never had. This is the trust I place in you because I know it in my disillusioned heart that you would only cherish it. So, read on. We only have more stories to tell.

I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you.

Respectfully yours,

Blake B. Belladonna

* * *

You know, it's strange. I've written novels before—this is my eighth completed with _Edelweiss_ as my seventh—but nothing quite of this caliber or length. I don't feel particularly empty or sad, but I don't feel happy, either. There's a tinge of pride welling inside my heart and a feeling of accomplishment that comes with completing such an endeavor, but I guess _Valence_ was so long and intensive that I haven't quite grasped the gravity of its absence yet. It's like it still has another chapter to go. I have a feeling this will hurt in a few days.

So, that was _Valence_. Long-winded and occasionally melodramatic, I'm happy with how it turned out. A bit sad, too, but that comes with the occasion.

If the final two paragraphs before Blake's letter did not make much sense, I apologize. Those were written at the same time as the end of chapter eleven—you know, Blake and Yang's first kiss beneath the fireworks and their confession thereafter. Both were before their times, somewhat grasping at straws that didn't exist yet, but I'm happy with the way they turned out. In the case of these particular paragraphs, there wasn't much change from the original writing; it was always supposed to be a summary of _Valence_'s larger themes with a somewhat vague recapitulation as to what happened in the narrative. In these regards, I think it worked well, but I don't fault you for perhaps thinking it was incoherent. Those, more than any of the other paragraphs in this story, were not meant to be an easy read. Hopefully, they weren't too terrible.

There's also the matter of the letter. Because I had that scene from chapter eleven written months in advance, I wanted to add another layer of symmetry between this chapter and the climax—why this was, I can only say an enjoyment of patterns. Whereas chapter eleven began with a letter, one now unread by Yang, this chapter ends with another having been purposefully written to be handed over. Moreover, I thought it would be fitting to close the novel on a Blake soliloquy since she is the focal perspective. Like the two paragraphs before it, it was a summary; but unlike those paragraphs, it also told where the two will go.

Now, on to reflections. For this author's note, I think I'm going to cover the novel overall instead of the regular chapter-by-chapter synopsis since this instalment was fairly self-explanatory. Unfortunately, this was a long story and there was a lot to it. I'll cover some bigger, overarching stuff that immediately comes to mind, but if you have questions about anything I didn't answer, feel free to send me a private message or ask in a review.

For a long time, I've felt as if Blake's character development has stagnated somehow, even if I purposefully emphasized larger points of her characterization. That's why this chapter felt a bit fresher for me. Aside from the fact that she and Yang are now past their stormy woes, we get to see the outcome of all their summer's turmoil. In the Faunus' case, she has become, as she stated, happier and uninhibited in some ways. Compared to who she was in chapter one—that is, quiet, uncertain, and a follower of whatever leader life presented—she's become a stronger person.

As many times as "I" (see: the narrator, not me) have called her a coward, I never thought she actually was. Of course, she could fall into a cowardly mindset from time to time, letting the flight response of "fight or flight" take over or fearing responsibilities for the consequences they would bring, but she's always been brave. Otherwise, she wouldn't have become a huntress. However, there were deficiencies in her character at the beginning of this tale as there were for every member of Team RWBY, but by the end, she turned them around and made a better life for herself.

She has become bolder and knows this in her heart. She has become confident on demand and praises herself for this. A peace of mind was established for the young Faunus, and this had always been her overarching problem in life. Whether this change can be attributed to herself or Yang, that's not mine to say, but the fact that she has changed and become markedly happier is evident. Her flirting with Yang, the act of trusting her with the journal, and her newfound ability to let things go show progress which can't be ignored. This story was never meant to be about one aspect of her personality or another but instead about her character overall and its multiple facets.

In this way, I believe _Valence_ was a success. She began with a friendship only by title and shared goals but ended with five figures in her life she could rely on unconditionally—Weiss, Ruby, Lilian, Cole, and especially Yang. If that isn't change, this adjustment to society and acceptance of allied company, then I don't know what is. Either way, I'm happy with her journey.

As for Yang, her story truly began a bit later than Blake's. There were hints to her unease in the earlier chapters, her admittance of not wanting to get in Ruby's hair for another summer (Chapter 2), her emotionality when speaking about her mother (Chapter 7), and her hesitation to leave Blake alone (Chapter 9). But I don't think it really began until chapter thirteen when she returned from Sierra to find Weiss dating her sister. In any other context, you could chalk this up to pure overprotectiveness, but now we have a reason for why she worries.

I really liked writing her character because it felt like a healthy change of pace from how I usually portray characters. All the idioms and double contractions (ex: shouldn't've) would otherwise be heretical for me, but she just felt lively, and I hope that came across to some degree.

However, having a character be sunny and care-free 100% of the time just doesn't work for a narrative as long as this—and with the addition of Blake having her crises dealt with, the other main character had to have something, too, right? That's why she had a shakable confidence in this story. By all means, she will continually be portrayed as never-say-die and tenacious, but, for the sake of drama, she had to have a reason to be so outwardly positive. And having that reason put a strain on her positivity made for an enjoyable writing experience.

So, her endgame in this story was to learn how to cry, to understand that the responsibilities which previously required her to seem invincible were no longer applicable. But I don't mean to say crying makes her weak. Rather, by letting emotion take over, whether it be joy or sadness, she's able to be herself instead of simply Ruby's sister or a stand-in mother. By being able to cry and not being seen as weak by Blake, she's able to move on from her past stressors and vent her remaining unhappiness. Simply, she can now act completely natural around Blake and understands that she won't be judged for it.

All in all, I'm really happy with how their characterizations turned out. From the beginning, Blake and Yang were fair opposites of each other—one being quiet and tentative while the other was sunny and enthusiastic—but by the end, this proved just as true. I never wanted them to become mirror images of each other, making the same jokes and wearing matching clothing, because that's just boring from a narratological standpoint. I wanted them to consistently attract and repel one another but gradually move closer to a sort of synchronized orbit. The goal was to keep them disparate while flipping certain aspects of their characters (who leads, who follows; who runs, who chases) to make them not only compatible but integrated. Blake will have periods of unease and regret, and so she'll go to Yang. Likewise, Yang will have moments where the stress of her façades becomes too much to handle, and so she'll go to Blake.

And regarding Ruby and Weiss' characterizations, I probably could have done better overall, but that's why _Edelweiss_ was written. As wordy as _Valence _is, I consider it somewhat lean in terms of what's on-topic and not. There was a definite bias weighted more towards Weiss' development than Ruby's, but that comes with what was needed in their moments. This story is about Blake and Yang, and although Ruby and Weiss were critical in its telling, I only had room to show their effects on the main characters, not so much their effects on each other. If I were to write _Valence_ again, I know I'd spend more time on scenes between Ruby and Blake. But as it is, their progression felt subtle enough to be important, so I'll consider that a victory.

Don't get me wrong, though. If I were to rewrite _Valence_, I would totally spend more time on Ruby and Weiss—not much more, but still something substantial. There were a few things about _Valence_ like that. I have some regrets I wish I could take back, some things I definitely should have done better. There were plot points sacrificed for the sake of narrative and corners cut just to get a chapter out, but they were, fortunately, few and far between. To reiterate, I'm elated with how this turned out, but it's good to note mistakes so not to make them again.

The two biggest mistakes, in my opinion, were the way I handled Blake's PTSD and the unwarned suddenness of her parents' call.

In the former regard, I really think I dropped the ball. While her experiences with the White Fang were unarguably traumatizing and she does have stress which results directly from said trauma, this does not mean I needed to directly call it "stress considered post-traumatic." PTSD is a loaded term, and if a writer uses it to characterize a character, there must be certain precautions taken so not to romanticize or gloss over it, one such precaution being adequate exposition. Since I said she suffered from post-traumatic stress, I should have included a bit more about its past causes and present effects—not enough to make the story revolve around it, per se, but enough to satisfy its existence.

And concerning her parents' call, that was just a matter of poor planning. I knew by chapter nine that they would need to be introduced in a somewhat jarring way, but the least I could have done was acknowledged them in an earlier chapter. The way I did it made them seem like throwaway characters. If I ever do something like this again, I know to reference the characters beforehand, perhaps offhandedly, once or twice before their introduction. That way, they don't appear out of thin air.

Other than that, though, I honestly believe this might be some of my best work anywhere. Even the chapter lengths, as long and arduous as they were, felt good to write. And I mean it. Writing stories like _NVG_ and _Solace_ in between felt somehow lifeless, as though I were leaving out so much. These 20,000-word chapters, although a pain to edit, just felt right.

Anyways, I think I've prattled on long enough. Just to be completely transparent, the reason why this author's note is so long is because I'm trying to push _Valence_ past the 400,000-word mark. I can't just let a story known for its long chapters end at 399,000 words, can I? Probably, but that's no fun.

_Valence_ has been…I don't know. It's certainly been an incredible honor, and I wouldn't have poured all my free time into it if I didn't enjoy it. But even then, those compliments aren't enough. I've learned a lot from this story, both about myself and writing. I'm always going to look back upon this tale fondly, and I'll use what I learned to make something even greater. That said, I'm not sure I'm done with this story yet since some of the earlier chapters still need to be re-edited. But not being able to write new content? That's what makes me tearful.

I think I've said it before, but if I could go back to the winter of 2014 and consider whether or not to do this all again, I'd do this all again. Admittedly, I'd make all the chapters at least 20,000 words long so I could write more, but I don't have that luxury. I'm going to miss _Valence_.

That said, I'm not done with RWBY. And I'm not done with the world and relationships set up here and in _Edelweiss_. I love these stories too much to leave things like this. By all means, _Valence_ is complete—its narrative has concluded and Blake and Yang have found the closure they've needed. But there's still more to do, a sequel to write.

The reason why I've been plugging _Edelweiss_ so much is because this concept of a sequel has been discussed there already—months in advance of this chapter's release. The long and short of it is that _Valence_ is essentially one half of something larger. I wasn't sure how well this novel would do, so I made it self-reliant and singular. That way, if it didn't do well, it'd be a one-off fluke. But because it did do well (in my opinion, anyway), I began to incorporate ideas from the sequel, leading to _Edelweiss_ (which is pretty much a five-chapter prologue) and a few minor details scattered throughout in this story.

So, there will be a sequel to _Valence_. And that sequel's first chapter will release **next weekend**. For those who are apprehensive, don't worry; the way this sequel's planned makes use of the aforementioned regrets and fixes them, making a smoother narrative which, I suspect, will be a bit more "action-packed." It will be a Bumblebee story with a heavy focus on Blake and Yang, but it will also have a similar focus on Ruby and Weiss, making it a slightly bigger White Rose story. There's yet more to do with Team RWBY, more ways to break their characters down and more fluff to build them up, and I sincerely can't wait to start all over again with _On Kaiser Island_.

The first chapter should be posted next Saturday. Between then and now, however, a primer short story will be released this Wednesday, setting up the first chapter and bridging the gap between the two novels. In the meantime, I strongly suggest reading _Edelweiss_, as there are characters and locations discussed within which will be integral to _On Kaiser Island_. The coming tale will feel very similar to _Valence_ and continue the trend of long chapters, but its idea feels somewhat better to me. I hope you stick around.

Now, with all that said—with all that rambling and word count padding done—I must thank you. This has been a long journey, and it wouldn't have been as fun without you. The reviews I've received, the conversations I've had, and even the gradual climb of my stories' statistics made me feel as though _Valence _was something great. Admittedly, there were times when those aforementioned regrets kept me from writing, but you all pushed me to keep going, whether you meant to or not. Really, this chapter wouldn't have happened if not for you.

You're good people. And I'm not just saying that to butter you up after reading through my story; I genuinely mean it. The compliments given, the critical analyses made, and even the unhostile ways of walking away show a strength of character the world sorely needs. Now, I know I'm generalizing, but I honestly believe this. There were a few bad apples which come with any demographic, but those went away after the first couple chapters. Those of you who stayed are, in my opinion, great people.

So, thank you for reading. _Valence_ wouldn't be as good as it is without your help. I certainly wouldn't be as enthused if not for you. Your readership is the reason why _Edelweiss_ was written in the first place and why _On Kaiser Island_ was followed through after all; I owe you so much, and the only way I can think of repaying you is to keep on writing.

This has been _Valence_, a long-winded journey through a longer-than-usual summer break. I hope you enjoyed.

Stay safe and stay tuned for _On Kaiser Island_.


End file.
